Intelligence failure led to Pulwama terror attack, finds CRPF internal inquiry

The Pulwama terror attack on a CRPF convoy leaving 40 personnel dead on February 14 was a big intelligence failure, reveal CRPF’s internal findings. These findings reveal a scenario completely from the stand taken by the Home Ministry, which stated that Pulwama Terror Attack was not an intelligence failure, reported India today

The inquiry report by Central Reserve Police Force marks out that although there was a general alert with regard to an IED threat but there was no specific information on threat from a car borne suicide bomber.

According to a report in India Today, CRPF’s report also said that no such "input" was shared by any of the intelligence agencies in Kashmir Valley where the forces were forewarned to take precautionary steps.

Ministry of Home Affairs had refused to accept that the terror attack was due to an intelligence failure.

In June, MoS(Home) G Kishan Reddy said, "J&K is affected by terrorism sponsored and supported from across the border for the last three decades. Owing to the policy of zero tolerance towards terrorism and sustained action against terrorists by the security forces, a large number of terrorists have been neutralized during the past few years. All agencies are working in a coordinated manner and intelligence inputs are shared among various agencies on real time basis. The investigation by NIA into the Pulwama terror attack so far has resulted in identifying the perpetrators."

Internal inquiry report of CRPF pointed out several lapses by the CRPF, which includes the unusual length of CRPF convoy. It has identified convoy length among one of the reasons behind the failure.

On February 14, the CRPF convoy consisting of 78 vehicles and 2,547 transients left Jammu for Srinagar.

According to the India Today report, not only was it easier to point out the convoy from afar, but it also made leaking information much easier, said sources. The report also pointed out that allowing civilian vehicle movement during convoy movement had cost the CRPF dearly.

Inquiry by CRPF also found out the reason behind the unusually long convoy. The report said that since February 4, no vehicles were plying on the Jammu-Srinagar highway on account of heavy snowfall and there were personnel on leave, posting and deployment.

At about 3.33 pm on February 14, as the convoy neared mile stone 272, the suicide bomber blasted off the vehicle-borne IED and targeted 'Bus Reg no HR 49F 0637 of 76 Battalion CRPF'.