Headley case shows merits of good diplomacy
The clockwork manner in which David Coleman Headley offered to turn approver during his first appearance before an Indian court days ago through video-conferencing and the prosecution's almost as prompt acceptance of the offer, suggests that the issue had been discussed beforehand by the parties concerned. According to some media reports, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval had lobbied intensely with American authorities to put some sense into Headley, now undergoing a prison sentence after being convicted for terror activities. Headley is a co-accused in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, and he has readily accepted the charge.
He will be an approver in the case Mumbai Police is investigating, but it remains to be seen if the National Investigation Agency, which too is probing the matter, will accept him as an approver. But for now, Headley will be a useful tool to expose the conspiracy and the people behind it. India's case against Pakistan-based militant groups as well as certain state actors in that country will most certainly be strengthened. Despite all the evidence which India has given to Pakistan against terrorists such as Zaki-ur-Rehman lakhvi and Hafiz Saeed, the two principal masterminds behind 26/11, there is little that Islamabad has done to bring them to book. The two continue to roam free and even get state protection.
Headley's confessions as an approver are expected to reveal the lies that Pakistan has been peddling across the world about its non-involvement, direct or indirect, in the terrorist attacks of November 26, 2008, in Mumbai. Given that Headley has also been given a pardon when he turned approval on the condition that he would not withhold any information he has and which Indian authorities demand to know, the path is clear for some sensational disclosures that will surely put Pakistan on the back foot. Headley (whose original name is Daood Gilani), had also similarly struck a deal with the US authorities, when he agreed to cooperate with them and managed a plea bargain, thus avoiding for himself a possible death sentence. He has got away with 35 years in jail.
The American role in facilitating the new development cannot be over-stated, nor can it be denied that the cooperation comes in the wake of heightened US-India friendship as a consequence of the rapport US President Barack Obama and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi have struck with each other. Therefore, the US's conduct has this time been markedly different from earlier when it virtually refused the Indian authorities effective access to Headley in connection with the case. This was because Headley had served as a double agent for the Americans as well as for the lashkar-e-Tayyeba.
This, coupled with the possibility that Washington, DC did not want to embarrass Pakistan by turning the terror convict over for questioning by an Indian court, ensured that New Delhi was kept miles away from a person who had played a key role in the 26/11 attacks. That has changed now, and there is even talk that at some point in time, given the pardon in place, Headley may even travel to India to participate in the legal process. Headley has decided to bare all, now that his links with the leT and his Pakistani handlers have effectively snapped. That's good for India.