Abandoned Pakistani boat found off Gujarat coast

NEW DELHI: Around a fortnight before a suspect Pakistani boat blew itself up after an hour-long chase by Indian Coast Guard, a mysterious fishing boat found abandoned off the Gujarat coast had created a ripple within the intelligence establishment.
According to intelligence sources, the alleged Pakistani fishing boat was found empty 10-15 days back, floating in the Arabian Sea off the Gujarat coastline.Not only were there no men on board, but no item of interest or equipment was found on the vessel, making agencies wary if it was abandoned by a group of infiltrating terrorists before they shifted to another vessel and possibly made their way to the Indian coast for a possible terror act here.
“The Coast Guard as well as states like Gujarat and Maharashtra were alerted to keep an eye in the Indian waters as well as along the coastline, and track any suspicious movement,” said an official.
During the 26/11 attack, the 10-member LeT attack module had left the Karachi port in a Pakistani vessel, before intercepting an Indian fishing vessel, MV Kuber, off the Gujarat coast, for the onward journey to Mumbai.
They finally landed at the Mumbai coast (Colaba) in an inflatable dinghy, before splitting and heading for the terror targets that included Taj Hotel, Leopold Café and Nariman House.