A member of Pakistan –based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), he had been deported from Saudi Arabia and arrested on landing at Delhi’s international airport. Given the ties between Islamabad and Riyadh, the Saudi leaders would not have acted the manner they did unless they were provided with evidence that left no iota of doubt in their mind on the complicity of Jundal.

Pakistan’s security analyst, Lt Gen (Retired) concedes this point when he says “Public perception is different but it might have not been a difficult decision for Saudi leaders,” he said. This view is echoed by another Pakistani expert, Imtiaz Gul. He said “It looks to be based on real politicking wherein Saudi authorities preferred pragmatism over anything else.”

Put mildly, the Jundal deportation from Saudi Arabia to Delhi is a big blow to Pakistan which has been in the denial mode over LeT role in Mumbai attack.  It had refused to extradite him as long he was on its soil. His fate was sealed after he landed in the Saudi kingdom with a Pakistani passport.   The US tipped off Riyadh of his presence and this led to his apprehension in the first instance. But it took almost one year for India to convince the Saudis of its claim over the militant since counter-terrorism cooperation was almost non-existent between the countries.

Understandably, Pakistanis exercised much diplomatic pressure on the Saudis against releasing Abu Jundal into India’s hands.

As a LeT insider and as one of the handlers who directed the Mumbai mayhem from a ‘control room’ in Karachi, Jundal was some one special and Pakistan could not afford to let him become a motor mouth before the Indians. Ajmal Kasab, the lone surviving terrorist from the Mumbai carnage had confessed to having learnt Hindi from him before setting out his mission to Gate of Way of India.

It will take a while to unravel how the Operation Jundal was accomplished but from bits and pieces of information that is available it is clear that a DNA test that conclusively linked him with his family in Beed, Maharashtra,   and some hard bargaining besides coordination between India, Saudi Arabia and the US has led to the return of Jundal to India from where he had escaped to Pakistan in 2006 after his arrest became imminent with the seizure of an arms consignment in Aurangabad.  

Expectedly, Hafiz Saeed, the Lahore based fountain head of Lashkar –e-Taiba, has denied any links with Jundal. Today he is leading Jamaatud Dawa, a charity that is said to be an offshoot of LeT.  

“Indians say he (Abu Hamza) belongs to the LeT… we don’t recognise the group. We are Jamaatud Dawa. We are a charity involved in social welfare and not terrorists,” said Hafiz Saeed through his spokesman, Yahya Mujahid.

His denial makes no material difference to the case. More so, when, as a report in the Express Tribune said, some LeT activists who had once been trained in the group’s camps in ‘Azad’ Jammu and Kashmir and northern parts of Pakistan said the name Abu Hamza sounded familiar.
 
Hamza started his terrorism career with the LeT around 10 years back. He had been in charge of Kashmir operations for over a year. During the 26/11 attack he was the voice from Pakistan, which guided the attackers.  The other major strikes that he was associated with included the attack on the Central Reserve Police Force camp at Rampur, Uttar Pradesh, and the 2006 train bombings.