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in. Colonel Khan was already there. He, along with Squadron Leader Gillani from PAF and Colonel Sharif were sitting on one side of the conference table. General Hussain was at the head of the table. Both officers saluted him and took their seats on the other side of the table. Hasan started the discussion by setting the context.
    “You gentlemen are here because of the unique experience in asymmetrical operations you bring to the table. We also have details of the specific competencies each of your teams or the people you have trained possess. Besides this, both of you have also served together. I am sure your interoperability brings definite advantages to the project.” He gestured to Colonel Khan, “Colonel Khan will now take you through the details of the operation. He has devised the entire plan and is in charge of activating the sleeper agents and other resources in India and Bangladesh. He will be your commander for this operation.”
    Colonel Khan began by sharing the background of the operation and the target. He then went into the details.
    “Both your teams will be inserted into India independently of each other and from different locations. You must choose five men each; the best five in your team. They should be able to speak Urdu and at least read and speak basic English. Shezad, your team will use the call sign ‘Karnail’. Since your team is already in the vicinity of LOC, you will cross over into Kupwara sector with a team of Hizbul operatives being pushed in for guerrilla activities in Kashmir. The team is led by a very able commander, Wasim Khan. He and his twenty men are responsible for your safe passage across the LOC. As soon as you enter India, a Hurriyat operative will meet you and supply you with Indian currency and papers. Wasim Khan will makearrangements to escort you to a safe house in Jammu. The safe house is controlled by an ISI agent who is a close confidant of a legislator in the J&K legislative assembly. He is a powerful man. He will ensure that you and your five men, along with a guide he will provide, are put on a plane to Mumbai. Once you land in Mumbai, a sleeper agent will come and receive you at the airport. He will take you to a safe house. This is where you will camp until a day before the attack. The sleeper agent, Mr Amin, as you will know him, will provide you with a new set of papers, documents, money, communication equipment and a vehicle. The day before the attack, a special agent will come down to the Mumbai safe house and drive you and your men to a safe house in Pune. For your safety, Mr Amin does not know about the existence of this ‘driver’. He believes that you are driving yourselves to some destination he doesn’t know of. Once you reach Pune, you will team up with Team Rashid and prepare for the attack.
    “What weapons are we to use? How do those reach Pune? Also what happens if we are to abort the mission?” Major Shezad asked.
    “Weapons are already being moved to the Pune safe house. It’s a farmhouse which has been rented out solely for this purpose. I will go into the details when we discuss the attack. In Mumbai you will get the details of your bolt hole and the required documents will be handed over to you. There is no turning back once you are in Pune,” answered Khan.
    Brigadier Hasan interjected, “In case there is a fire fight while you make your way through Kashmir, you and your men are
not
to endanger yourselves and the mission. Let Wasim Khan’s boys handle the trouble. That is an order.”
    “My men are trained for an attack on Avantipur airfield and we would need a refresher course for the new target,” Shezad added.
    “Yes, Major, we understand that. Your men will be flown to Sargodha for a weekend of orientation. The Squadron Leader here will arrange for that in a few days. Would you like to add to that Gillani?” he addressed the Air Force officer.
    “Major, we have set up a complete mock-up of the Pune airfield in the SSW training