SPY EYES

In yet another major embarrassment for the Indian government, another “fugitive” named in India’s most wanted list handed over to Pakistan was found in a jail in Mumbai, just days after the first such case came to light, Press Trust of India reported.

Feroz Abdul Rashid Khan, alias Hamza, 51, an accused in the 1993 Mumbai blast case, was arrested from a village in Navi Mumbai in February 2010 and was handed over to the Criminal Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for further investigation.

CBI had issued an Interpol Red Corner Notice against Khan in 1994 but the notice was not withdrawn even after the agency had got his custody.

“CBI has conveyed to the Home Ministry that the lapse was on the agency’s part. When CBI forwarded the list to Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), they forgot to delete the name of this person,” a Home Ministry spokesperson said in the PTI report.

Khan is alleged to have facilitated transport and distribution of arms and ammunitions during the blast and subsequently, Mumbai police had alleged that following Dawood Ibrahim’s instructions, Khan arranged for landing of arms allegedly used in the blast.

“We are examining the matter and strict action will be initiated against erring officials,” CBI spokesperon Dharini Mishra said.

Earlier, Wazhur Kamar Khan, whose name had also figured in India’s most wanted list, was traced in Mumbai, in the first case of a major goof-up.