ISI Mark: Tigers' Target

Seven persons, including four special commandos of the Special DiplomaticSecurity Unit, providing VVIP escort to the vehicle of Col.(retd) Bashir WaliMohammed, Pakistani High Commissioner in Sri Lanka, were killed in athree-wheeler explosion that targeted the military convoy that was escorting thediplomatic vehicle of Col.Bashir Wali  in the heart of Colombo city, onFlower Road in Kolpity at 1:25 p.m. on August 14,2006.According to the localPolice, the Pakistani High Commissioner escaped unhurt.

Col. Bashir Wali, a former chief of Pakistan's Intelligence Bureau, and a formerofficer of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), was posted as thePakistani High Commissioner in Colombo in June 2004. He had previously served ina junior post in the Pakistani Mission in Colombo. A detailed note on hisposting written by me on June 18, 2004, is available here.

Since taking over as the Pakistani High Commissioner in Colombo, he has beenvery active in promoting military-military relationship between Sri Lanka andPakistan and liaison between the intelligence agencies of the two countries.

Since President Mahinda Rajapakse took over as the President in November lastyear, Sri Lanka, which had received from Pakistan a consignment of weapons,communication sets and other equipment suited for counter-insurgency operationsagainst the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in 2001, has sought furthermilitary supplies from Pakistan.

In this connection, the Jane's Defence Weekly of June 8, 2006,reported as follows: "Sri Lanka is looking to Pakistan to significantlystrengthen its military capabilities amid the increasing prospect of renewedcivil war, revealed  documents obtained exclusively by Jane’s DefenceWeekly. According to high-level discussions detailed in the documents, SriLanka has asked Pakistan to facilitate the purchase of defence equipment wortharound USD60 million.  Sri Lanka has asked that their requests be given the‘utmost priority’ amid a deteriorating security situation and a fragileceasefire. The army’s shopping list has a combined value of USD20 million,while the air force’s requirements are worth a further USD38.1 million. Sri Lanka is clearly looking to build up its military capacity and has alsoissued a plea to Pakistan to provide swift technical assistance for its T-55main battle tanks and C-130 transport aircraft. In one of the documents, dated 1March, Sri Lanka writes ‘It would be greatly appreciated if arrangement couldbe made to invite a technical team to Colombo to carry out an immediate surveyof T-55 main battle tanks and C-130 (transport) aircraft." It adds: ‘Since anumber of MBTs [main battle tanks] and C-130s are in need of urgent technicalrepairs it is earnestly requested that this be given utmost priority and asuitable technical repair team be arranged to carry out immediateinspection…"The army’s extensive wish list includes ten Baktar Shikananti-tank guided missile weapon systems, 300 standard/tandem warheads and twotraining simulators; respectively worth USD1.5 million, USD4.5 million andUSD120,000."

It is learnt that Col Bashir Wali, who enjoys an important clout with GenPervez Musharraf, has been playing an active role in pushing through supply ofall the equipment sought by Sri Lanka. It is also learnt that part of this is tobe supplied as a gift and a part is to be sold at reduced prices.

According to Tamil sources, the LTTE also suspects that Pakistani Air Forceofficers, with experience of air-mounted operations against the Balochfreedom-fighters, have been training the Sri Lankan Air Force officers and thatthis should account for the success of the recent air strikes of the Sri LankanAir Force against the LTTE forces on the ground as well as against the LTTE'sNavy.

There have been reports that President Rajapakse proposes to raise a Muslimregiment in the Eastern Province to counter the LTTE, which seems to suspectthat Sri Lanka has been seeking the assistance of Pakistan for this purpose too.The recent LTTE raid in the Muttur area, which is predominantly inhabited byTamil-speaking Muslims, was partly meant as a warning to the Muslims not to letthemselves be used by the Government against the LTTE.

The LTTE's targeting of Col.Bashir Wali appears to be a warning to Pakistanto desist from helping the Rajapakse government in its counter-insurgencyoperations against the LTTE and in its attempts to create a divide between theTamil-speaking Hindus and Muslims in the Eastern Province.

B. Raman is Additional Secretary (retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. ofIndia, New Delhi, and, presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies,Chennai.