Key Kandahar Negotiator Doval Remains In The Thick Of Pahalgam Parleys

The plane then departed for its final destination, landing at Kandahar airport in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan at 8:33 am. The Taliban surrounded the aircraft with armed militia, claiming it was to protect the passengers, though Indian officials viewed this as a move to prevent a military rescue operation

Those who were born in 1999, when Indian Airlines Flight IC 814 was highjacked, are now fully grown up adults, who are witnessing a war-like situation between India and Pakistan.

Ironically, in these 26 years, one man remains relevant and continues to call the shots. Well, identifying is not a tough task. Ajit Doval, the super sleuth and National Security Advisor, remains a larger-than-life figure. The 1968 batch IPS officer was the key negotiator who ensured the release of passengers aboard Flight IC 814. Decades later, Doval is the point man of the Indian government to deal with a very grim situation following the massacre of 26 tourists in Pahalgam.

In his recently published book- ‘ My Comint Memories’ on the silver Jubilee of Kandahar Hijacking, Vishnu Mishra, a veteran of India’s premier intelligence agency RAW and someone who was there at Kandahar when the negotiations were underway, writes- “I went to Kandahar with my Joint Secretary Anand Arni and Additional Secretary S.D. Sahai. My official duty was to establish and maintain Emergency Radio Communication between Kandahar and Delhi.

“When Vishnu Mishra and his colleagues reached there, the senior team that was to negotiate with the hijackers was already camping in Kandahar. It comprised Doval, Chander Dhar Sahai and Vivek Katju. We all know that now a prolific writer, Katju is an IFS officer and an authority on Pakistan and Afghanistan affairs,” he adds.

It may be recalled that this traumatic event, which lasted eight heart-wrenching days from December 24 to December 31, 1999, involved the hijacking of an Airbus A300 en route from Kathmandu to New Delhi. The crisis exposed the vulnerabilities in India’s security apparatus, sparked intense diplomatic negotiations, and led to the controversial release of three dreaded terrorists in exchange for the hostages.

On December 24, Indian Airlines Flight IC 814 departed from Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu at 4 pm (IST), carrying 179 passengers and 11 crew members, including Captain Devi Sharan, First Officer Rajinder Kumar, and Flight Engineer Anil Kumar Jaggia. The flight was a routine one that was scheduled to land in New Delhi within an hour and forty minutes. However, at approximately 4:39 pm, as the aircraft entered Indian airspace, five armed men, later identified as members of the Pakistan-based Islamist militant group Harkat-ul-Mujahideen (HuM), seized control of the plane. “The hijackers, identified by Indian authorities as Ibrahim Athar, Shahid Akhtar Sayeed, Sunny Ahmed Qazi, Zahoor Mistry, and Shakir—all Pakistani nationals—used code names: Chief, Doctor, Burger, Bhola, and Shankar.”

The hijackers ordered Captain Sharan to divert the plane westward, initially demanding to land in Lahore. However, Pakistani authorities denied landing permission, forcing the plane, which was critically low on fuel, to land at Raja Sansi airport in Amritsar at 7 pm. The aircraft remained on the tarmac for approximately 55 minutes, during which time Indian authorities faced a critical opportunity to intervene. The Punjab Police sought permission from the central government to deploy commandos, while the Crisis Management Group (CMG) in Delhi considered sending National Security Guard (NSG) operatives. However, delays in decision-making and concerns about passenger safety prevented any action. Frustrated by the lack of refueling, the hijackers stabbed two passengers, including 25-year-old Rupin Katyal, who was fatally wounded, and forced the plane to take-off without refueling.

The aircraft landed in Lahore at 8:07 pm, where it was refueled after negotiations with Pakistani authorities. It then proceeded to Dubai, landing at Al Minhad Air Base at 1:32 am on December 25. In Dubai, the hijackers released 27 passengers, primarily women and children, and offloaded Rupin Katyal’s body. The United Arab Emirates denied India’s request to conduct a commando operation, citing sovereignty concerns. The plane then departed for its final destination, landing at Kandahar airport in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan at 8:33 am. The Taliban surrounded the aircraft with armed militia, claiming it was to protect the passengers, though Indian officials viewed this as a move to prevent a military rescue operation.

The hostage crisis:

The hijackers’ initial demands were extensive: the release of 36 jailed terrorists, including Masood Azhar, Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, and Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar; a ransom of $200 million; and exhumation of HuM leader Sajjad Afghani’s body. Azhar, arrested in 1994 for terrorist activities in Jammu and Kashmir, was a key figure in HuM. Sheikh, apprehended in 1994 for kidnapping foreigners, was linked to several militant groups. Zargar, arrested in 1992, faced numerous murder charges.

The Indian government, led by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, faced immense pressure to resolve the crisis without compromising national security. Once the Indian External Affairs minister Jaswant Singh arrived to lead the negotiations with the Pakistan’s ISI backed hijackers, it was certain that now the whole episode will be come to an end.

Prior to his arrival as Vishnu Mishra writes “A negotiating team, including Doval, Katju and Sahay, was talking to hijackers.”

According to Mishra, Doval was not at all happy as the government had conceded so many demands of hijackers. Katju was happy that finally the passengers were freed.

Vishnu Sharma stated that Doval was an outstanding officer, whose understanding of security issues was matchless.

In his highly gripping book, he also discussed other important subjects like terrorism in India, international terrorism and the rise and fall of Osama Bin Laden in great detail.

‘My Comint Memories’ is published by Pravasi Prem Publishing.

(The author is Delhi-based senior journalist and writer. He is author of Gandhi's Delhi which has brought to the forth many hidden facts about Mahatma Gandhi)