NIA Still Unsure of How Many Terrorists Entered Pathankot Air Base

Investigators are still unsure of how many terrorists crossed the border to enter India.

The Quint has learnt from an Intelligence officer that investigators are still unaware of the route taken by the terrorists to cross the International Border to Punjab. After 17 days of the terror strike, questions are also raised on the number of terrorists who entered the Pathankot Air Force Base. On the basis of the intercepted calls, which were recorded in the early hours of 1 January, security officials only know that two different teams of terrorists entered the base.

Through the intercepted calls of the terrorists we got to know that they entered in two teams, but we still don’t know how many terrorists were there in each team, or in total.

IB Official

The Intelligence officer also added that they’re still unclear of the date on which the terrorists managed to cross the international border. At the moment, it appears difficult to know the date of their entry because there no calls were intercepted before they entered our soil.

A few days ago, the investigators found two sets of footprints along the Bamiyal village, which are suspected to be of the terrorists. The footprints have been sent for forensic tests. If the footprints match with those of the terrorists, investigators might get some hint of the route taken by them.

National Capital and Other Parts of the Country on High Alert

According to a senior official of the Ministry of Home Affairs, Delhi is on High Alert till the Republic Day, and the number of security personnel deployed in the National Capital is much ‘higher’ than previous years.

Some serious IB alerts have been issued in the past few days, and therefore security checks are high now. The coming week is very crucial for security agencies.

Senior Official, Ministry of Home Affairs

According to the sources, security officials have been briefed and sensitised about the terror threat in the capital. All security measures installed in the city, like CCTV cameras, are checked to ensure proper functionality. Security has been beefed-up inside all Government buildings in the central Delhi.

Every kind of measures are being taken up by Delhi Police and other security agencies to tighten security in the marketplaces, railway stations, the airport, and metro stations. Recently, a high level meeting took place in the Ministry of Home Affairs to review the security measures.

Salwinder Singh’s Polygraph Test is Crucial

On Monday, the NIA got permission from a Delhi court to conduct a polygraph test on the Gurdaspur (HQ) SP Salwinder Singh. He is likely to undergo the test on Tuesday. According to the source, so far no evidence has been found to establish Singh’s link with the terrorists. But he also added that the lie detector test is essential because of the discrepancies in Singh’s statement. According to NIA sources, Salwinder has told the investigators that he was let off alive by the terrorists because he was a Sikh. He also told them that the terrorists would have killed him had they known he was a policeman.