Paragraphs "planted" in NIA report to prove Ishrat Jahaan was LET mole involved in 2004 plot to assassinate Modi

By Pratik Sinha*
David Headley, the Pakistani American who scouted targets for the 26/11 terror attack by the Lashar-e-Toiba (LET), has been news for turning into an approver. He has also been news regarding the Ishrat Jahaan case, with a section of the media highlighting, on the basis of information provided by powerful sections in New Delhi, how Headley had said that Ishrat was an LET mole.
In fact, efforts are being made to refer to how sections of paragraphs related to Headley's confession, in which he had claimed that Ishrat was an LET mole, were “dropped” from the final National Investigative Agency (NIA) report. Ishrat, a 19-year-old girl from Mumbra, Mumbai, was killed in what is known to be a fake encounter on June 15, 2004. It was alleged that she was part of a plot to kill Narendra Modi, then chief minister of Gujarat.
But there has been little effort to analyze what exactly do these paragraphs actually say.
Paragraph168 said, on being asked about Ishrat Jahaan, Headley stated: “In late 2005 Zaki ur Rehman Lakhvi introduced Muzzammil to me. Having introduced Muzzammil, Zaki talked about the accomplishments of Muzzammil as a Lashkar commander. Zaki also sarcastically mentioned that Muzzammil was a top commander whose every big ‘project’ had ended in a failure.
“Zaki added that Ishrat Jahaan module was also one of the Muzzammil’s botched up operations.”
Paragraph 169 quotes Headley as saying that “apart from this he had no other information/knowledge about Ishrat Jahaan.”
Here, as one can see, Headley claims he had been introduced by Zaki Ur Rehman Lakhvi to Muzammil in 2005. Muzammil was one of the Mumbai bomb blast masterminds. It is during this introduction that Lakhvi repotedly told Headley that Ishrat Jahaan's module was Muzammil's.
One can note here that Headley claims that he was introduced to Muzammil in 2005, which essentially means that Headley had never met Muzammil prior to that.
Now let us see what do two other paragraphs, 17th and 28th from the NIA report, have to say.
In paragraph 17, Headley is quoted as saying that he met Muzammil in 2002: “In the year 2002. I met Muzzammil Butt, a Kashmiri in Muzaffarabad. Abu Dujana introduced me to Muzzammil. Muzzammil and Abu Dujana had stayed together in Kashmir. Muzzammil is very important operative of LeT. He was Involved in a series of attacks on Indian security forces when he was in Kashmir.
“I recollect that once Muzzammil had told me how he had gone and killed civilians in a village in South Kashmir before the visit of the then US president Bill Clinton to India. After coming to Muzaffarabad, he was initially given the charge of the India operations.”
Paragraph 28 on post-training activities in Pakistan says, “On and around August 2004, I met Zaki and requested him to change my handler as I was not comfortable with Yaqoob. Zaki then handed me over to Muzzammil, Abdur Rehamn was also working in Muzzammil’s set up…
“Then in 2004 Muzzammil again introduced me to Sajid at safe house in Muzzaffarabad. Sajid got married around three years ago. I also attended the marriage.”
As one can see, In paragraph 28, Headley claims that in August 2004, he requested Zaki to change his handler and he was handed over to Muzammil, and that Muzammil introduced him to one Sajid in a safe house in Muzzaffarabad.
Clearly, Headley, therefore, could not have been introduced for the first time to Muzammil in late 2005 by Lakhvi when he already knew him since 2002. This glaring discrepancy in the paragraphs, where Headley talks about Ishrat Jahaan and Paragraphs 17 and 28 from the original report clearly show that Headley's Ishrat Jahaan confession was a plant.
Most likely, since these paragraphs were not in consonance with the facts in rest of the report and would have compromised rest of the report, they were dropped.
IB was facing a lot of heat on Ishrat Jahaan, and when IB wants things to happen, they find their way.
One can safely presume that these two paragraphs were planted, and are part of a bigger exercise to save two top ruling political leaders from Gujarat, who are alleged to have ordered these murders and their henchmen.

---

*Gujarat-based human rights activist. Click HERE to download NIA report

Comments

US-China truce temporary, larger trade war between two economies to continue

By Prabir Purkayastha The Trump-Xi meeting in Busan, South Korea on 30 October 2025 may have brought about a temporary relief in the US-China trade war. But unless we see the fine print of the agreement, it is difficult to assess whether this is a temporary truce or the beginning of a real rapprochement between the two nations. The jury is still out on that one and we will wait for a better understanding of what has really been achieved in Busan.

When growth shrinks people: Capitalism and the biological decline of the U.S. population

By Bhabani Shankar Nayak* Critically acclaimed Hungarian-American economic historian and distinguished scholar of economic anthropometric history, Prof. John Komlos (Professor Emeritus, University of Munich), who pioneered the study of the history of human height and weight, has published an article titled “The Decline in the Physical Stature of the U.S. Population Parallels the Diminution in the Rate of Increase in Life Expectancy” on October 31, 2025, in the forthcoming issue of Social Science & Medicine (SSM) – Population Health, Volume 32, December 2025. The findings of the article present a damning critique of the barbaric nature of capitalism and its detrimental impact on human health, highlighting that the average height of Americans began to decline during the era of free-market capitalism. The study draws on an analysis of 17 surveys from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), conducted by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (...

Mergers and privatisation: The Finance Minister’s misguided banking agenda

By Thomas Franco The Finance Minister has once again revived talk of merging two or three large public sector banks to make them globally competitive. Reports also suggest that the government is considering appointing Managing Directors in public sector banks from the private sector. Both moves would strike at the heart of India’s public banking system . Privatisation undermines the constitutional vision of social and economic justice, and such steps could lead to irreversible damage.

Shrinking settlements, fading schools: The Tibetan exile crisis in India

By Tseten Lhundup* Since the 14th Dalai Lama fled to India in 1959, the Tibetan exile community in Dharamsala has established the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) as the guardian of Tibetan culture and identity. Once admired for its democratic governance , educational system , and religious vitality , the exile community now faces an alarming demographic and institutional decline.

Sardar Patel was on Nathuram Godse's hit list: Noted Marathi writer Sadanand More

Sadanand More (right) By A Representative In a surprise revelation, well-known Gujarati journalist Hari Desai has claimed that Nathuram Godse did not just kill Mahatma Gandhi, but also intended to kill Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. Citing a voluminous book authored by Sadanand More, “Lokmanya to Mahatma”, Volume II, translated from Marathi into English last year, Desai says, nowadays, there is a lot of talk about conspiracy to kill Gandhi, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, and Shyama Prasad Mukherjee, but little is known about how the Sardar was also targeted.

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Rajiv Shah Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

N-power plant at Mithi Virdi: CRZ nod is arbitrary, without jurisdiction

By Krishnakant* A case-appeal has been filed against the order of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) and others granting CRZ clearance for establishment of intake and outfall facility for proposed 6000 MWe Nuclear Power Plant at Mithi Virdi, District Bhavnagar, Gujarat by Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) vide order in F 11-23 /2014-IA- III dated March 3, 2015. The case-appeal in the National Green Tribunal at Western Bench at Pune is filed by Shaktisinh Gohil, Sarpanch of Jasapara; Hajabhai Dihora of Mithi Virdi; Jagrutiben Gohil of Jasapara; Krishnakant and Rohit Prajapati activist of the Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has issued a notice to the MoEF&CC, Gujarat Pollution Control Board, Gujarat Coastal Zone Management Authority, Atomic Energy Regulatory Board and Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) and case is kept for hearing on August 20, 2015. Appeal No. 23 of 2015 (WZ) is filed, a...

New RTI draft rules inspired by citizen-unfriendly, overtly bureaucratic approach

By Venkatesh Nayak* The Department of Personnel and Training , Government of India has invited comments on a new set of Draft Rules (available in English only) to implement The Right to Information Act, 2005 . The RTI Rules were last amended in 2012 after a long period of consultation with various stakeholders. The Government’s move to put the draft RTI Rules out for people’s comments and suggestions for change is a welcome continuation of the tradition of public consultation. Positive aspects of the Draft RTI Rules While 60-65% of the Draft RTI Rules repeat the content of the 2012 RTI Rules, some new aspects deserve appreciation as they clarify the manner of implementation of key provisions of the RTI Act. These are: Provisions for dealing with non-compliance of the orders and directives of the Central Information Commission (CIC) by public authorities- this was missing in the 2012 RTI Rules. Non-compliance is increasingly becoming a major problem- two of my non-compliance cases are...

Behind Sarojini Nagar’s glamour: The Hidden lives of its daily wage workers

By Samra Iqbal* In Delhi’s bustling Sarojini Nagar market, what you buy and how much you pay rarely affects the person selling it to you. “Maalik kabhi baitha hi nahi hai” (“the owner never sits”), said Bilal, a daily wage worker who has spent years behind one of the hundreds of stalls that line the market’s narrow lanes.

Search This Blog