Intelligence alerts treated casually: Pradhan panel

The Ram Pradhan Commission probed the Home Department's responses to the Mumbai attack of 26/11, and found it wanting. The report noted that there was total confusion in the processing of intelligence alert at the state government level.

December 22, 2009 03:39 pm | Updated December 16, 2016 02:57 pm IST - Nagpur

LAX ABOUT ALERTS: Security personnel at Churchgate station in Mumbai. The Ram Pradhan Committee, which probed the 26/11 attacks and the response by authorities found several lacunae in the handling of intelligence. File photo

LAX ABOUT ALERTS: Security personnel at Churchgate station in Mumbai. The Ram Pradhan Committee, which probed the 26/11 attacks and the response by authorities found several lacunae in the handling of intelligence. File photo

The Ram Pradhan Commission, which probed the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, has observed that the intelligence alerts provided by Central agencies were treated “casually” and “mechanically forwarded” to operational units by the office of the Director General of Police (DGP), the Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) and the State's Home Department.

The Commission’s report, which was tabled in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly yesterday, said the intelligence alerts were forwarded by the DGP office, sometimes with a semi-official letter.

It also noted that there was total confusion in the processing of intelligence alert at the state government level. The Chief Secretary normally passes the alerts from the Intelligence Bureau or Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to the State Home Department.

Both Additional Chief Secretaries (Home) and Principal Secretary (Home) initially deposed before the panel that they had not received any intelligence inputs from the MHA.

However, the Maharashtra DGP had furnished copies of several important intelligence inputs issued by MHA addressed to the Chief Secretary and Home Secretary.

The panel noted a serious lapse - the Additional Chief Secretary (Home) was not handling the sensitive communications and intelligence inputs directly but entrusted the job to a junior-level officer.

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