MEN IN INDIA CAUGHT WITH SIX METRIC TONS OF STEEL BALL BEARINGS TO MANUFACTURE TERRORIST BOMBS OF THE LTTE

By Walter Jayawardhana

The Mumbai Police arrested a Muslim man born in Tamil Nadu but living in Mumbai for helping to procure six metric tons of ball bearings to be used as missiles in claymore mines and other weapons for the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) for its terrorist activities, Indian police sources said.

The 42 two year old man, Miraj Saheb Ismail, a resident of a Mumbai (formerly Bombay) suburb called Bhagat Singh Nagar, indicated to the police that the commercial metropolitan area and its state , the Maharashtra is being used increasingly by the Sri Lankan terrorist group for procurement of arms.

Additional Commissioner of Police, Bipin Bihari told Mumbai news men that the arrested man is originally from Tamil Nadu and living in the city for the last four years.

He said the suspect has facilitated members of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam to obtain six metric tons of ball bearings from Null bazaar in South Central Mumbai.

The area is a major hub in India manufacturing motor spare parts and steel ball bearings are widely produced in this area for that purpose. Ball bearings are also widely used as missiles in improvised explosives like claymore mines and other bombs by the LTTE against civilians and security personnel in Sri Lanka . By exploding two such devices the LTTE was able to kill 65 civilian bus passengers including 15 children, the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission said in a report.

The arrest came after four days following the arrest of five Sri Lankan Tamils who entered Tamil Nadu as refugees and three others in Chennai for trying to smuggle explosive material to Sri Lanka. Police said the five men have come to Tamil Nadu as refugees to smuggle 2000 kilograms of ball bearings to Sri Lanka after receiving them from Mumbai.

The Mumbai Police suspects that Ismail had sent at least six metric tons of steel ball bearings to the Tamil Tiger agents in Chennai in three consignments of 2000 kilo grams each to be smuggled to Sri Lanka.

Before engaging in this illegal activity, the LTTE using its Tamil Nadu political supporters like Vaiko was able to raise a smokescreen alleging that the Sri Lanka government was importing explosives from India.

Additional Police Commissioner of Police Bipin Bihari said the suspect Ismail was a man who sold tea and coffee from his bicycle at night and this alleged crime was done while he was engaged in that job. He said to determine exactly what part he had played in the deal the Mumbai Police is discussing the matter with the Q Branch of the Chennai Police who arrested the Sri Lankan Tamils in Chennai.

The first suspect to be arrested in Tamil Nadu was Prabahakaran and the Police said he is an ardent supporter of the LTTE. After that, the others connected with the smuggling were arrested. Prabhakaran was arrested at a place called Tuticorin.

From November last year there had been constant reports that the LTTE was regularly using Tamil Nadu for procurement of arms since many other European and American connections have been sealed. Between Rameshwaram and Sri Lanka the Tamil Nadu Police seized a lathe machine that could make bomb shells on November 29 2006.

When a vehicle coming from Andra Pradesh to Madurai, met with an accident at a place called Manamadurai police discovered 30 boxes of gelex boosters widely used to increase the velocity of bomb shrapnel.

On December 5 and 11 separate groups of fishermen discovered live rockets in the sea when they got entangled in their nets. Later security services who helped to diffuse the rockets said they had the striking capacity of hitting targets more than 10 kilometers away. On January 24 this year the Tamil Nadu Police arrested the eight people mentioned at the beginning of this story for trying to transport two metric tons of steel ball bearings.

Meanwhile Indian intelligence sources have also focused their attention to Maharashtra State since Naxalite there were able to get arms due to the surrendering Maoists in Nepal who could re-route their arms supplies to the Indian state and the LTTE could negotiate for a share of it.

Tamil Nadu Opposition leader Jayalalitha Jeyaram has criticized Karunanidhi’s DMK administration for once again allowing Tamil Nadu to become a safe haven for LTTE weapons. But Karunanidhi apparently pressed by the Center said that he would send a stern warning to those indulging in arms smuggling from Tamil Nadu to Sri Lanka. The Chief Minister further said such acts would cause a setback in efforts to find an amicable solution to the ethnic issue.

"We will not permit such acts in the state," he said, replying to the points raised by D Sudarsanam, Congress Legislative Party leader, who raised the issue in the state assembly.

In an obvious reference to AIADMK leader Jayalalitha he said some people were trying to portray a picture as if militants had infiltrated the state and to "cause panic and tension" among the people. A Sri Lankan refugee Siva, who tried to smuggle materials used in making weapons, was arrested by the police. Iron ball bearings, cash and three cell phones were seized following his arrest, he said.