MUMBAI, Nov 29 (Reuters) - Shock gave way to grief and anger on Saturday as India grappled with what newpapers called its own “9/11” and protesters accused neighbouring Pakistan of being behind attacks that killed 195 people.
Commandos and rescue personnel were cleaning up the wreckage of a three-day rampage when about 50 protesters gathered near the smouldering Taj Mahal Palace Hotel. “Our soldiers came and Pakistan ran away,” they shouted, pumping their fists skyward.
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| Indian commandos rest in the lobby following a military operation at the Taj Mahal hotel in Mumbai on Saturday. AFP |
India has blamed the strikes on “elements” from nuclear rival Pakistan and evidence is mounting that the Islamist gunmen may have hatched their plan there.
For relatives of the victims, the reality of the attacks was laid bare at a morgue at the JJ Hospital in Mumbai.
“For three days, we kept hearing different reports about my sister. Finally, today when I saw her, her face was blown off,” said a relative of journalist Sabina Saikia, who was killed inside the Taj Mahal hotel.
A text message circulated throughout Mumbai urging people to wear black on Sunday. Many lit candles in cities across the country on Saturday as a mark of condolence.
Elsewhere across India, thousands mourned 20 policemen and soldiers killed fighting the heavily armed militants who turned India's commercial and entertainment capital into a war zone with coordinated assaults on city landmarks.
“This is a day of mourning for all the men who laid down their lives,” Maharashtra state police Chief A.N. Roy told reporters. The last rites were conducted with full state honours.
TV footage showed the flag-draped and garlanded coffins of the dead men -- widely described as martyrs -- being carried in brightly coloured processions. Military bands in red and black uniforms played and honour guards fired 21-gun salutes.
Newspapers called the Mumbai attacks India's own “9/11”, referring to the Sept. 11, 2001, hijacked airliner attacks on the United States which killed about 3,000 2,973 people.
The Hindustan Times wrote: “India is under attack. The very idea of India is under attack...Playing the headless chicken is no longer an option”.
Politics did not take a break, with local polls taking place in New Delhi on Saturday.
The Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), India's main opposition, took out front-page advertisements accusing the ruling Congress party coalition of failing to defend the nation.“Brutal terror strikes at will. Weak government. Unwilling and incapable. Fight terror - Vote BJP,” said one ad, showing a blood-red stain on a black background.
Congress, criticised by the BJP about national security for the past few weeks, shot back: “20 days of false campaigning cannot replace 10 years of development. Your decision”.
India sees Pakistan U-turn on ISI chief’s visit
ISLAMABAD, Nov 29, (AFP) - Pakistan on Saturday reversed its decision to send its powerful military intelligence chief to help probe the Mumbai terror attacks, as the army said it had not been consulted on the plan.
“A spokesman of the Prime Minister's House has said that a representative of ISI will visit India instead of the Director General of the ISI to help in investigating the Mumbai terrorism incident,” a statement said overnight. Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh asked his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani to send the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief during a phone conversation Friday, after New Delhi blamed the attacks on its neighbour.
Before the government U-turn, chief army spokesman Major General Athar Abbas had told AFP that the decision to send the ISI chief had not been conveyed officially to the army.
The statement indicating the government's change of heart was issued a few hours later.
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