The much hyped-up trial of Pakistani-Canadian 26/11 terror accused Tahawwur Rana has finally come to a close in the United States and one can say with confidence that it did not end the way in which many, especially in India, would have expected.
Indian agencies have been saying that the bigger disappointment regarding this trial has not just been the acquittal of Rana. The more important aspects with regard to the likes of American terror operative David Headley's Lashkar-e-Tayiba handler Sajid Mir and Inter-Services Intelligence officer (also accused of terror plotting) Major Iqbal not even finding a mention in the verdict.
Getting some clarity regarding the role of Sajid Mir and Major Iqbal was extremely crucial and all hopes were on this court at Chicago.
India wonders why David Headley stopped short of speaking more about these two men who he repeatedly interacted with during his 26/11 mission, an official in the Intelligence Bureau says.
"Rana's acquittal has hurt India, but it is not the end of the road, since we do have our own independent investigation. However, it was extremely crucial for the Chicago court to have made some observations on Mir and Iqbal. These are the men who are part of the Pakistani establishment, and more importantly, are hiding in that country and we all know what the issues are when it comes to accessing those men," sources in the Intelligence Bureau say.
"Going by the testimony of Headley where he starts off with promise and then backtracks, it only goes on to show what a skilled and trained operative he is. At the end of it, he only said what he already had and has not diverted even an inch more," sources add.
The IB says that the entire 26/11 attacks was sponsored by the Pakistani establishment. "It is one thing when we deal with individuals such as Rana and Headley. The job was made easier since they were in the United States of America which in turn assures us of a chance of questioning them," the official says.
"It would have been a different story altogether if they were holed up in Pakistan."
"While dealing with matters pertaining to terrorism, it becomes extremely difficult when a particular country is directly involved in the attack. India does realise the role played by the (Pakistani) establishment in this attack, but it was extremely important that even the United States did," the IB official feels.
"Major Iqbal is a part of the establishment while Sajid Mir is a global terrorist. These are the kind of people who need to be dealt with international pressure and this verdict would have been the ideal platform to deal with such persons. Moreover, it was important for the court to recognise the role played by these men and had that been done, then the case for India would have been much easier."
The likes of Mir and Iqbal do figure in the dossiers that India has sent to Pakistan. Today Pakistan can simply reject these names on the pretext that there has been no finding by a US court. It is also a well known fact that they would subscribe to a view of the US court rather than India's demand.
The fact that these very important names were not mentioned at the end of the trial literally gives them a clean chit and only strengthens them to go about their activities.
Now India will have to put up a very strong case and also implead itself at the law suit in New York to prove the guilt of the ISI.
There is a lot of homework that the Indian investigators will have to do in order to nail the ISI link to the 26/11 case. Also India could hope that there would be a mention about these persons when Rana goes on to appeal.
Speaking of Mir and Iqbal, the former comes across as a more dangerous person. A person like Iqbal will not be used for another attack since Pakistan cannot let the names of its officers come out again.
However, Mir is the one that the world needs to worry about, IB official says.
"He has a very selective set of skills which has helped him emerge into a global terrorist. He will continue to nurture many more David Headleys and he has been assigned a very key job to ensure that the LeT turns into a global terror outfit," the official adds.
