BooksBarbecue
Back Operation Trojan Horse Save as PDF
Chapters (65)
  1. Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Dedication
  4. Authors’ Note
  5. 1. ‘IF ANYONE MOVES, FIRE MAARO’
  6. 2. DAWN ABDUCTION
  7. 3. WAITING GAME
  8. 4. ‘BREAKING’ SALIM
  9. 5. THE CONFESSION
  10. 6. AN ENCOUNTER
  11. 7. ‘LEADER IS IN INDIA ALREADY’
  12. 8. BABAJI’S MAN WITH NO EXIT PLAN
  13. 9. ‘MAN OF RESPECT’ IN HYDERABAD
  14. 10. TRACKING SALIM
  15. 11. HOLDING BACK
  16. 12. WHAT IS SALIM HIDING?
  17. 13. POULTRY FARM YIELDS 143 CHICKENS, 380 EGGS, 2 PAKISTANI ‘GUESTS’
  18. 14. A TOOTH FOR A TOOTH
  19. 15. OPERATION TROJAN HORSE
  20. 16. THE YOUNG DRONE-MAKER
  21. 17. AN AMBUSH
  22. 18. MURDER AND RETRIBUTION
  23. 19. NEW RECRUITS
  24. 20. BUNGALOW NUMBER 105
  25. 21. A STEP INTO THE PAST
  26. 22. TRAINING
  27. 23. GIVING INDIA A ‘THOUSAND CUTS’
  28. 24. THE GAME BEGINS
  29. 25. SHOOT TO KILL
  30. 26. KRAV MAGA, KALI AND TRACKING SKILLS
  31. 27. THE MIND OF NAWAZ
  32. 28. KEY CONCEPTS
  33. 29. THE SACRIFICE
  34. 30. ‘ONCE IS A COINCIDENCE, TWICE IS ENEMY ACTION’
  35. 31. FIRST CONTACT WITH THE ENEMY
  36. 32. BREAKTHROUGH IN KISHANGANJ
  37. 33. ROAD TO THAMEL
  38. 34. THE EAGLES ARE FLYING
  39. 35. KARACHI APPOINTMENT WITH LeT BOSSES
  40. 36. DAWN AT BAYT AL-MUJAHIDEEN
  41. 37. RPGs AND DUCKING LIVE BULLETS
  42. 38. SAFFRON MILK AND A GAME OF CHESS
  43. 39. RETURN TO INDIA
  44. 40. THE FIRST ASSIGNMENT
  45. 41. LOOKING FOR ATIF
  46. 42. TERROR ON A PLATE
  47. 43. MURDER IN THE DARK
  48. 44. RING THE BELLS
  49. 45. THE TOAST OF LeT
  50. 46. BACK TO THE DEN
  51. 47. ‘YOU COULD KILL JUST TWO, BABAR?’
  52. 48. FIRST TARGET
  53. 49. DEHRADUN
  54. 50. TIME FOR REVENGE
  55. 51. TERROR AT BVP HEADQUARTERS
  56. 52. KARACHI IN MOURNING
  57. 53. GUNNING FOR THE CM
  58. 54. A SUMMONS TO KARACHI
  59. 55. A SERIES OF BOMBINGS
  60. 56. BREACHING THE BASTION
  61. 57. THE LAST HURRAH
  62. 58. ATTACKING THE CRPF CITADEL
  63. 59. A PROMOTION
  64. 60. THE NIGHT OF 26/11
  65. About the Authors

He caught hold of Salim’s neck and landed punches on his stomach, one after another. The other man joined in. He pinned Salim’s face to the floor and began slapping him hard. The thrashing continued for about half a minute. Then there was a knock on the door.

The pain from the blows did not matter to Salim. It was what they had dubbed him to be that bothered him – a terrorist. His assailants had also accused him of being a non-Indian – a ‘Pakistani’, to be precise. They had also called him Farhan Qureshi.

One of his two assailants went to the door and spoke in a low voice. When he returned, he and his companion began questioning Salim.

They had many questions:

‘When did you reach Hyderabad from Pakistan?’

‘Were you not preparing to kill dozens in serial blasts across Hyderabad during the city’s annual Ganesh Chaturthi procession?’

For the next few hours, his interrogators treated him roughly but were surprised when Salim survived the ordeal without asking why he was being targeted.

‘He is being thrashed on an hourly basis, sir, but he is yet to divulge anything. He has not winced.’ One of the assailants was on phone.

Salim also heard another voice, which he recognized as the booming voice he had heard earlier, giving the command to put him in the chopper.

‘Did he ask why he was picked up? Is he shocked or furious?’

‘No boss. He has not asked who we are or where he is. He is a slab of stone!’

‘That’s nice,’ said the man with the booming voice. He took out his phone and punched a number. ‘We have the right man. Had he not been who he is, he would have been screaming out about why he got plucked out. But he has not. He knows he is busted and is scared now.’

4. ‘BREAKING’ SALIM

4

‘BREAKING’ SALIM

‘Theek hai, band karo yeh,’ the man with the booming voice spoke sharply as he entered the room.

His rebuke startled Salim’s minders. ‘Yes, boss,’ one of them said feebly. The duo stopped hitting Salim and stood in attention.

‘Get a few chairs; make him sit on a stool,’ the ‘boss’ ordered.

Salim was made to sit on a wooden stool that one of the men brought in from outside. He was given a glass of water. But it was snatched away even as he was taking gulps from it. He wiped away the blood on his forehead and at the corner of his lips while glaring at the man who had done that.

‘What animal-like behaviour!’ Salim scolded the man. ‘Sir, what is this? Are you all goons?’ Salim asked the ‘boss’, finally laying eyes on him.