Pakistan’s 26/11 Lead Cop: Pak Must ‘Face Truth, Admit Mistakes’

“Pakistan has to deal with the Mumbai mayhem… the case has lingered for far too long,” writes former Pakistan top cop

Are we as a nation prepared to muster the courage to face uncomfortable truths and combat the demons of militancy that haunt our land?
— Tariq Khosa, Former Director General, Federal Investigation Agency

Tariq Khosa served as Director General, Federal Investigation Agency in 2009. As head of Pakistan’s federal police, he supervised the investigations into the Mumbai 26/11 terror attacks.

In a column in Pakistan’s daily newspaper Dawn, Khosa wrote:

Pakistan has to deal with the Mumbai mayhem, planned and launched from its soil. This requires facing the truth and admitting mistakes.

The case has lingered on for far too long.

— Tariq Khosa, Former Director General, Federal Investigation Agency

Khosa, considered an officer with integrity and impeccable character, has also handled other high profile cases such as the investigation of the assassination of Benazir Bhutto, and the infamous memo-gate.

Taking exception to Pakistan’s ‘Good-Taliban, Bad-Taliban’ policy, Khosa writes,

The duality and distinction between good and bad Taliban, including all militants and terrorists, should stand removed from Miramshah to Muridke, from Karachi to Quetta.

— Tariq Khosa, Former Director General, Federal Investigation Agency

Alluding to India’s alleged role in supporting insurgents within Pakistan, Khosa adds,

Let both India and Pakistan admit their mistakes and follies and learn to co-exist while trying to find solutions to their thorny issues through peaceful means.

— Tariq Khosa, Former Director General, Federal Investigation Agency

Khosa cites seven key pieces of ‘evidence’ that Pakistani prosecutors have ignored while pursuing the 26/11 trials in Pakistan. The FIA investigation in Pakistan led by Khosa, had for instance, confirmed -

- the attackers’ Pakistani origin

- the existence of the planning and logistical centre in Sindh

- the ops room in Karachi, from where the ‘handlers’ of the 10 terrorists directed the attack on a minute-to-minute basis on phone

Calling the Mumbai case “unique” Khosa writes “proving conspiracy in a different jurisdiction is more complex and requires a far superior quality of evidence.” He adds,

Therefore, the legal experts from both sides need to sit together rather than sulk and point fingers.

— Tariq Khosa, Former Director General, Federal Investigation Agency

Read Tariq Khosa’s full column for Dawn here.