According to Mudgerikar, they first attacked the long-distance section of the terminus, where trains arrive from and depart to every point of the Indian compass. This lent credence, in his view, to the notion that the terrorists had targeted Westerners, because substantially more foreigners use the long-distance trains compared to the domestic Mumbai-area trains, which are primarily ridden by Mumbai natives.
Mudgerikar informed us that the hour-long gun battle left several railway police officers dead, in addition to many railway staff (train operators, cleaning staff, etc).
He wouldn't give an official number of casualties. Police officers in the station, who like most others in this troubled city share their information sotto voce, indicated that 'over 40' had died, including 'three foreigners, nationalities unknown'. Later, we'd hear that at least 56 people had died at CST.
Mudgerikar also described the tremendous dilemma that had faced railway police. They could not fire at will given the possibility of killing innocent civilians nearby. For the terrorist, any death is a bonus; for those fighting terrorism, collateral damage is unacceptable. This frees the terrorist to wreck uninhibited mayhem, and handcuffs the security personnel who seek to end their murderous spree. The problem is exacerbated when terrorists used frightened passengers and staff as human shields.
In this photo: Bullet holes pierced the glass of a security stall at CST, damaging a computer monitor inside
Photograph: Reuben N V
Also read: Commandos in action
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