From Our Delhi Bureau

NEW DELHI: Is India becoming a terrorism-sponsoring state? So it would seem going by reports that India has gifted away Rs 400 crores in the last few weeks to dreaded LTTE and Hizbul Mujahideen through the good offices of the home-grown cloak and dagger outfit Research and Analysis Wing, popularly known as RAW.

According to sources in New Delhi, soon after New Delhi gave Rs 450 crores as credit to Colombo to buy food articles from India, the LTTE expressed its displeasure to India through some friendly Tamil Nadu leaders.

Apparently in a bid to assuage the hurt feelings of the Tamil Tigers, New Delhi ordered the RAW chief, Mr. Avtar Singh Dulat, a 1965 batch IPS officer of Rajasthan cadre, to give Rs 200 crores from his organization's coffers.

The sources said that in view of the sensitive nature of the assignment, Mr. Dulat personally supervised the delivery of Rs 200 crores to the LTTE.

In the second case, Mr. Dulat and his organization have had to operate as cogs in a larger project. In this case too, the RAW paid Rs 200 crores to Hizbul Mujahidin from its secret funds. But more of that later. First, some background.

Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Pakistan's CEO Parvez Musharraf are expected to be at the UN for the millennium meeting later this year. The USA, or to be more precise President Clinton, wishes to use this opportunity to signal the start of dialogue between the two estranged neighbours. Some Indian and foreign captains of industry too are very keen to see an end to hostilities between India and Pakistan so that mutually-beneficial projects can be launched in the Indian subcontinent in line with US business interests in this area.

It is for this reason that a senior Delhi-based journalist having close links with a leading business house has been keeping an informal channel open between the PMO, through Principal Secretary Brijesh Mishra, and Islamabad, and militant organizations in Srinagar.

In an operation fine-tuned by the US State Department, Pakistan made the first least-risk move of cutting off funds to Hizbul, the only major militant outfit operating in Kashmir with the support and participation of Kasmiri elements, as opposed to other fundamentalist militant organizations which run with men and material provided by Pakistan.

As support from Pakistan dried up, Hizbul found it diffuclt to keep its flock together or carry out its operations. The PMO was quick to seize this opportunity to buy peace, even if temporary, with the Hizbul. The price: Rs 200 crores. This time again, it was Mr. Dulat who personally handled the whole operation and the money was handed to the Hizbul far away from the prying eyes of the media at a foreign destination.

But in this case, Mr. Dulat's organisation had to do much more than just act as the bag-man. As other Hijadi organizations in Pakistan turned heat on the Hizbul operational commander Abdul Majid Dar, it became almost impossible for him to travel to India through illegal border routes being used by the jihadi groups.

So in close coordination with the ISI of Pakistan, the RAW ensured Dar's safe passage by air from Islamabad to New Delhi and on to Srinagar by air. It was on a valid passport that Dar travelled from Islamabad to Dubai from where he boarded the flight to Delhi with secret agents from both the countries providing him protection from a safe distance while other hands ensured that he was not unduly bothered by immigration officials either in New Delhi or in Islamabad, which had thus far never issued a passport to a militant to ensure evidence in black and white of its support to militant organizations.

Significantly, this is not the first time that India has given money to violent organizations. Especially, during the heydays of NAM, several freedom movements looked up to India and were provided funds. Usually these were funds were channelled through various other Departments. But this time, the dirty work was assigned to RAW.

Meanwhile, RAW secretary Dulat is directly involved in the negotiations that have begun for an attempt to end the militancy in Kashmir. Dulat is understood to have told Jammu and Kashmir People's Political Front (PPF) chief Fazal Haq Qureshi, who has been declared the negotiator on behalf of the Hizbul Mujahideen, that the Government would like the All-Party Huriyat Conference, an umbrella body of some 18 militant outfits, to be also invited for talks. Qureshi promised to himself approach the Hurriyat leaders to sink differences and join the talks.

The Government had been so far holding negotiations only with the Hurriyat Conference, which is the parent body many outfits, and as such it cannot afford to dump them to talk to the pro-pak organiations directly, the sources said.

The Ministry sources said Dulat, who is having his own contacts through RAW that he heads, has also spoken to Abdul Majid Dar, the chief commander of Hizbul Mujahideen, to be available when he and Home Secretary Pandey meet Qureshi on Wednesday.

Dar is hesitant to be present at Qureshi's place but the sources said he has promised to talk to them before they leave Srinagar, the sources said.

The importance that the Government is giving to negotiations with the militants in Kashmir could be adjudged from its decision to send the highest official of the rank of the Special Home Secretary for negotiations, the sources said.

They said the talks with Qureshi will be primarily with regard to additional terms that the Hizbul has communicated to the PMO as pre-condition for talks as it has claimed stoppage of the army action in the valley was not enough.

Some of the demands of the Hizbul are, however, difficult to be accepted as they want all military and para-military forces to leave the bunkers and checkpoints erected all over Srinagar as also throughout the Kashmir valley.

The Hizbul has also demanded release of all militants detained in jails, treating them as political prisoners. This step could be possible only after the negotiations are completed and a peace is guaranteed by all sides, sources said.

The para-military forces' presence would, however, continue for a stipulated period if agreed upon but they cannot be right now withdrawn since the terrorist activities are still taking place in the state even after Hizbul Mujahideen declared ceasefire, the sources said. They said Qureshi would be asked to probe the possibility of contacting and persuading all militant outfits who are reluctant to accept Hizbul's suo moto ceasefire to stop terrorism pending talks. END