26/11: What David Headley will never tell us

David Headley has written a memoir narrating his journey into the Lashkar-e-Tayiba (LeT). He speaks extensively about what drew him towards the Lashkar and how the 26/11 attack was carried out.

However, is this memoir truly from the heart? He is still not telling us a lot of things and a glance of this memoir only shows that it is old wine in a new bottle.

A bare reading of the memoir shows that he has said nothing more than what he had already said.

The memoir is a just a stunt and all of us know that while he entered into a plea bargain with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), he had promised to reveal very little and avoid a lot of intricate aspects surrounding the 26/11 mystery.

[Mumbai attack plotter Headley joined LeT "full time" after 9/11]

Here we list out what David Headley should have revealed and not spoken about things we already know since the past five years.

His local contact in Mumbai:

For some strange reason, India never bothered to probe into the local links that Headley had when he had come to Mumbai to carry out a survey of the targets.

Confidential files clearly reveal that he had three local contacts in Mumbai who helped him around the city.

He was told to get in touch with Basheer a friend of Tawwahur Rana, the man who arranged his travel documents.

Headley was received by Basheer when he landed in India. It was Basheer who helped Headley around the city and even sent two other men to carry out the job.

['Headley betrayed all - his wives, US, ISI, LeT']

The Indian investigators never bothered probing this angle. Headley during his confession before both the FBI and the NIA did not mention this angle even once. His memoir too is silent about the same.

Sajid Mir, the mystery:

Headley does speak about Sajid Mir, the man who was his handler during the 26/11 attack. He was in regular touch with this person who is a big player in the attack.

There is really no proper information on Mir and the most the Intelligence Bureau could get on him was that he was an officer in the ISI.

Sajid Mir was branded an international terrorist. The US, France and India have files on him, but none have any concrete information on what he exactly does or who he is.

While speaking to sources in Pakistan they are hell bent on terming him as a fictitious character and the only Sajid Mir they know is an old cleric.

Headley clearly knows more about Mir. He has not uttered anything about the antecedents of Mir in his confessions and as expected his memoir too is silent on this aspect.

[Headley, home ministry termed Ishrat a 'terrorist']

Headley could have blurted more on the Americans:

When Headley was first arrested the FBI did its bit to cover up that he was a double agent. His travel details to India were very much in the know of the Americans.

His stint in Pakistan when he turned rogue was also a well known fact.

He is clearly not someone that the FBI or the CIA did not have details about.

In the year 1989 he was sent to Afghanistan by the CIA to gather information about drug smuggling.

The other mystery is surrounding the lack of action by the FBI despite being told clearly about his activities.

His girlfriend had told the FBI that he had turned rogue. Even after the 26/11 attack, the US was informed about him. However, the US took one long year to tell India about him.

Headley makes no mention about his direct contacts with the CIA and how the lid was always placed on his activities.

India has enough material to prove that the US knew not just about him but his activities as well.

However, Headley does not say much in his confession to the NIA or even in his latest memoir.

Headley can never say it all:

Headley has a practical problem on hand. An officer of the NIA, who questioned him, says that he was well rehearsed and decided this is all he was going to say.

Moreover, when he questioned him, a team of the FBI was present at all times to monitor the questioning.

Headley after his arrest entered into a plea bargain with the US. As per the deal, he would not be sentenced to death and also not extradited to India.

In exchange Headley had promised to reveal only as much the FBI wanted to hear.

If he goes on to reveal anything more than what he had first confessed to the FBI, then the plea bargain agreement would be violated and the Americans can sentence him to death and also extradite him to India.

Now everyone knows that is not going to happen.