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Al-Qaeda planned WTC-type hit on Delhi: Bhujbal
By Our Special Correspondent
MUMBAI, DEC. 6. The Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister, Mr. Chhagan Bhujbal, today told the Assembly that four suicide squads had been formed by the Al-Qaeda to carry out attacks on Parliament House in New Delhi and on targets in U.K. and Australia alongwith the September 11 strikes on the World Trade Center and elsewhere in the U.S.
Making a suo motu statement, he disclosed that this startling information was revealed by a member of Osama bin Laden's outfit, Mohammad Afroze Abdul Razak, arrested by the Mumbai police on October 2.
During interrogation it was learnt that Mohammad Afroze had been sent to Melbourne, Australia to get trained in flying a commercial airliner, to Texas in the United States for getting trained on a Boeing simulator and to the United Kingdom for further training.
They had formed four groups of suicide pilots, one to hit the Pentagon, another the Rolta Tower in Australia, the third the British Parliament and the fourth to target the Parliament House in New Delhi.
Mr. Bhujbal said Mohammad Afroze was in the group whose target was the British Parliament. The Navi Mumbai police had tumbled upon the terrorist living in a guest house. It wondered how come an ordinary looking man's passport bore stamps for so many foreign trips and immediately handed over the case to the Mumbai police.
The matter was conveyed to the Union Home Minister, Mr. L.K. Advani who asked him to keep the matter under wraps. ``I am making this statement, revealing only limited details because Mr. Advani himself talked about it in New Delhi yesterday,'' Mr. Bhujbal said, ignoring the Opposition demand to know the nationality of Afroze.
The terrorist was interrogated by the Police Commissioner, Mr. M.N. Singh himself, the Deputy Chief Minister said. He told the interrogator that Al-Qaeda had put funds in different banks and the operative cell members were withdrawing money, using electronic facilities. He was found to be receiving a lot of e-mail messages.
The Leader of the Opposition, Mr. Narayan Rane said that he had read about Mohammad Afroze in newspapers some days ago and wanted to know how the press learnt the truth if the case was meant to be kept secret. The Minister replied that New Delhi was informed about it and he did not know from where the information had leaked to the press.
PTI reports:
Mohammad Afroze was produced amidst tight security today before a Mumbai court which remanded him to judicial custody till Dec. 20. He was brought in a veiled dress and has been charged under various sections of IPC, including conspiracy, waging war against the nation and committing depradation in countries which have peaceful relations with India.
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