The nationwide alert issued on March 5 by the Home Ministry to thwart possible strikes by a group of 10 LeT and JeM terrorists on vital installations and religious places raises several awkward questions. The inputs for the alert were provided by Nasir Khan Janjua, Pakistan’s NSA, to his Indian counterpart, a move that has no precedence. The information, however, lacked specifics such as terrorists’ names, the approximate time and route of their entry and targets.
It defies belief that Janjua’s agencies, which have such excellent rapport with the LeT and JeM, would not have even a sketchy idea of the terrorists’ precise plans and their movements. It is true that procuring actionable intelligence is not always easy but inputs cannot just be apprehensions. It is obvious that Janjua was sharing what was convenient for the Pakistani establishment.