This year marks 17 years since terrorists from the Pakistan-backed Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) unleashed mayhem on the streets of India’s financial capital, Mumbai, on November 26, 2008.
Commonly referred to as 26/11, these coordinated assaults by a group of 10 terrorists sent shockwaves through the nation and the world. The terrorists had entered the city of Mumbai on the night of November 26, 2008, via sea route and over the course of four days, they killed 166 people and injured 300, in some of the busiest parts of the city.
The targets were carefully chosen after being surveyed for maximum impact, viz., the Taj and Oberoi Hotels, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, the Jewish centre at Nariman House, Cama Hospital, Metro Cinema and the Leopold Cafe, since these places were frequented by foreign nationals along with a major part of Mumbai’s workforce.
The scars left by the tragic event continue to haunt those who witnessed it and the families who lost their loved ones. The bullet marks at Leopold Cafe and Nariman House, the bust of Assistant Sub-Inspector Tukaram Omble, who gave up his life while capturing the lone surviving Pakistani terrorist Mohammad Ajmal Amir Kasab, and the streets of South Mumbai keep alive the memory of the gruesome terror attack.
The nine LeT terrorists were killed while Kasab was arrested. In May 2010, Qasab was handed the death penalty, and two years later, hanged in a maximum security prison in Pune.
The 26/11 attack, especially in the wake of the Delhi blast on November 10 this year, is a reminder of the lessons learned concerning national security and India’s ‘zero tolerance’ policy against terrorism.
According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, NSG Mumbai will organise a solemn memorial and pledge ceremony themed ‘Neverever’ at the Gateway of India today, to honour the martyrs, survivors and all victims of the 26/11 attacks. The event reaffirms a collective resolve that such an incident must never ever recur.
A dedicated memorial zone will display photographs and names of the heroes and all the fallen, with floral tributes and candles and will introduce a concept-based ‘Living Memorial’ formed from the wax of homage candles and retained for future observances. Also, 11 colleges and 26 schools across Mumbai will conduct pledge-taking by students under the ‘Neverever’ theme, reinforcing youth commitment to peace, vigilance and national security, the press release said.
As night falls, the Gateway of India will be illuminated in the tricolour with the word ‘Neverever’. Meanwhile, in a recent development, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) sought a fresh set of details from the United States government in connection with the case linked to 26/11 Mumbai attacks mastermind Tahawwur Rana through the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) process in October, sources said.
These additional queries were raised months after Rana’s interrogation, following his extradition to India, which could aid further investigation into the 2008 Mumbai terror plot.
(With inputs from ANI)
