-----9-----8----3-----7----2----0----6----4-----5----1

1----A----B----C----D----E----F----G----H----I----J

2----K----L----M----N----O----P----Q----R----S----T

3----U----V----W----X----Y----Z

‘So, Bangalore will get encoded as “819172619182224221”,’ Al-Wali said. ‘Here, B is equal to 81 as per the matrix. A is 91, N is 72, G is 61, A is 91, L is 82, O is 22, R is 42 and E is 21,’ he explained.

‘The numerical code is like this:

5----2----1----4----8

0----3----6----7----9

For example, 9980309883 is coded as 8895258992.’

Al-Wali told the boys that they would have to undergo a fifteen-day training period at the safehouse. ‘You will be put through a series of crash courses, which will equip you with additional knowledge and skills,’ he informed them.

Over the next fortnight, a battery of ustaads and clerics came to the safehouse to instruct the trainees.

The first course was Daura-e-Sufa and dealt with Salafi teachings.

‘The word Salafism comes from an Arabic term which means pious predecessors,’ said Abdul Sayeed, the cleric who had come to the safehouse to teach the recruits. ‘Salafism is considered to be the purest form of the religion.’

After the Daura-e-Sufa, the five trainees were put through the five-day Bait-ul-Rizwan and Daura-e-Ribat courses. The first entailed training in unarmed combat. A fighting technique drawn from karate, judo, boxing and wrestling was taught to the five.

Daura-e-Ribat was an instruction on how to make safe contact, or ‘raabta’ in Arabic, and included conducting surveillance, tailing, taking photographs covertly and befriending ‘targets’ who could be sources of information.

‘Making contact, whether with your commanders, fellow brothers or even your family members, must be done safely and as per the guidelines given to you,’ said Iqbal, the LeT ustaad who was training them. ‘Even in emergencies, the safety protocols must not be breached,’ he warned them.

‘For instance, you may never make a call to Pakistan from India. You also never contact a satellite phone number from India. You always contact your brothers in Dubai or Muscat or Riyadh, and they will put you in touch with whoever you need to contact,’ Iqbal said.

The five men also underwent the Daura-e-Tadribul Muslimeen, which was a workshop on leadership and character building.

After the fifteen-day training ended, Al-Wali sent the five to an ISI training facility in Marwah, in Pakistani Punjab. There, a team of five non-commissioned officers trained them for another seventy-five days.

Once the ISI training was over, Al-Wali took Atharv to the Nepalese embassy in Islamabad to apply for visas for the five recruits. Atharv was introduced as the owner of Shafiz Carpets, a Karachi-based exporter of carpets. The four others were described on the visa forms as employees of Atharv’s firm.

Armed with the required paperwork, the five took a PIA flight to Kathmandu. On reaching Kathmandu, Atharv went to a PCO booth and called a number that Al-Wali had given him. The number belonged to ‘Krishna’, who would help them enter India from Nepal.

‘Be ready with Rs 1.5 lakh in Nepalese currency. Reach the bus terminal tomorrow at 1 p.m.,’ Krishna instructed Atharv.