22 Sep 2008/NEW DELHI: Not only was he a whiz of sorts when it came to computer technology, slain terrorist and alleged Indian Mujahideen mastermind Atif Ameen alias Bashir was also highly motivated when it came to executing his terror plans in coordination with SIMI's Abdus Subhan and LeT in different cities across the country. He personally knew and kept in touch with operatives at various levels in different terror organisations , and also possessed leadership qualities which helped him manage his so-called jihadis .
A bright student, Atif had completed his B Sc (IT) from IACM Institute in Ghaziabad. So meticulous was he while planning his operations that he not only directed the movements of his associates, but would also decide how they should look. He would tell them whether to shave or not, keep their hair long or short and what to wear while going out for a recee. Police are also not ruling out the possibility that he had links with the Taliban or al-Qaida. "Atif seems to have really trained his module well as they religiously listened to his directions. He never allowed them to question him and when they asked him whether they should leave Delhi after the blasts, Atif convinced them to stay put. Those arrested also told police that Atif used to work out minute details of the attack, right from the timing of the blasts to the sites. His boys were only gievn information on a need-to-know basis. Police looking through seized material from the house including a laptop and pen drives have learnt that Atif was in touch with several people, including a few "highly-educated " ones, who used to write the emails for the group and send them out through hacked wifi connections in Mumbai. Some of them were from the terror hub of Azamgarh. Police added that the name of a cyber expert from Mumbai had cropped up during investigations. The module followed a similar modus operandi while carrying out blasts in differnt cities, but the required time frame varied. For the Delhi blasts, the module carried out the recee a day prior to the blasts while in Ahmedabad, the recce took place 10 days in advance. The bookings of the train journey to Ahmedabad was done by some SIMI men in that city under fake names. The module got the tickets in hand at the platform on the day of departure. Atif almost never discussed his plans and kept to himself. However, he always insisted that the blasts should be carried out in the evening, when the maximum number of people were on the roads, to ensure maximum human damage. A newspaper sans any blast story used to disappoint Atif, said police. The modules were so well trained that when they went to plant the bomb at India Gate, the bomber put a half-filled liquor bottle inside the polythene to cause more damage. In Central Park, the bomber purchased bananas and kept its peels inside a polybag containing the bombs and old newspapers, to make it look more authentic. The polythene was thrown inside the garbage bin. [EMAIL PROTECTED]
