Burdwan: How ISI played Bangladesh vs India

Was the ISI trying to play Bangladesh against India? Since the Awami League came to power in Bangladesh the party has ensured that the relations with India are particularly good and this has not gone down too well with a section in Bangladesh and the ISI.

The investigations into the Burdwan blast has revealed that a major part of the funding and the logistics were taken care of by the ISI.

A meeting of the Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen, Bangladesh leaders and the ISI officers held in Dhaka in 2009 is key to the investigation and it reveals that a deadly plot was hatched against India.

ISI used Bangladesh as launch pad

The ISI was well aware that using Bangladesh as a launch pad to strike at India would be their best bet. Through Bangladesh they could easily control the two major states of West Bengal and Assam.

In addition to this there was already the major issue of infiltrations which the ISI used to its advantage. During the meeting of 2009 it was decided that they would take this operation to the next level.

The JMB's main intent was to destabilise the Awami League. The ISI also is aware that as long as the Awami League is in power it cannot interfere in Bangladesh. The deal the JMB and the ISI struck was beneficial to both.

The ISI felt that if the JMB set up modules in West Bengal it could prepare bombs and train cadres easily. While one part of the module would‎ launch strikes in Bangladesh the other would carry out blasts in India.

Funding terror

The ISI has many operatives to finance terror activities in Bangladesh. There have been instances to show that Dawood Ibrahim had spent a considerable amount of time in 2010,2012 and 2013 in Dhaka.

Indian Intelligence bureau officials have information about the visits made by Dawood and several other of his associates to Dhaka. These meetings ensured that funds reached the Jamaat with ease.

The D gang also helped the Jamaat smuggle arms into North Eastern states where there was a high demand. The National Investigating Agency too had found that several bombs made in Burdwan were carried by by the women cadre to Assam and handed over to the Bodo militants.

Bangladesh to provide details

The NIA which has filed a chargesheet in the Burdwan case will very soon put out further details on the case. Bangladesh would be providing India with details about the meetings of the ISI officers and the members of the JMB which were held several times.

These details are important for the probe as it would help us reveal the ISI's intention in aiding the Burdwan module, an officer with the NIA says. It is very clear that the ISI was trying to play Bangladesh against India to destabilise the ties between the two nations, the officer also informed.