By Rathindra Kuruwita

Former Commandant of the STF, Senior DIG (Retd.) M.R. Latheef earlier told the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (PCoI) investigating the Easter Sunday attacks that he heard about the National Thowheed Jamaat (NTJ) and its leader Zahran Hashim only after the Easter Sunday attacks, but yesterday he admitted he had been aware of Zahran and the NTJ even before the attacks.

Earlier a Commissioner asked the witness if STF’s Kattankudy office had not bee aware of NTJ and Zahran before the Easter Sunday attacks.

SDIG Latheef said the STF intelligence agents were not geared to uncover intelligence information on national security. They had been established to work on intelligence provided by other agencies and how best to use such intelligence.

Chairman of the PCoI then asked the witness if STF intelligence officers had never reported on Zahran and the NTJ. Latheef said no intelligence information had been provided by STF agents.

Commissioners directed Latheef’s attention to a report sent by the STF intelligence officers to the Commanding Officer of the Kalawanchikudi STF camp on 24 March, 2018. This report referred to Zahran and the NTJ and Latheef acknowledged that the report referred to NTJ and Zahran.

Latheef was also shown STF intelligence reports and he admitted that those reports too had referred to Zahran and his activities.

“Did the Secretary of the Commission ask you to submit documents on the religious extremism that were available at STF?” Chairman of the Commission asked the witness.

“I was instructed,” SDIG Latheef said.

Commissioners: “Why didn’t you include STF reports on Zahran and the NTJ in the documents you submitted to the Commission?”

SDIG Latheef: “I don’t know if the documents you have were received by the STF headquarters. Can you please request a report on this from the STF headquarters? These three reports were sent to STF regional camps. It should be checked whether they were referred to the headquarters and it should be ascertained whether any officer at the headquarters had inquired into it.”

The Commissioners also questioned the witness on the transfer of five intelligence officers attached to the STF camp at Arugambay and Kalawanchikudi between February 2017 and October 2018. Latheef said he had to look at the relevant documents before answering the question.

The Commissioners then asked Latheef if his earlier statement to the PCoI, i.e. that he had never known about Zahran before 4 April, 2019, was true, Latheef said that he had been aware of NTJ through certain electronic and print media reports before the Easter Sunday bombing.

He had also been made aware of Zahran during discussions held at the Police headquarters and during discussions with other senior police officers, he said.

The Commission then questioned him whether it could have been possible for him to take action on Zahran using the report of the SIS, warning of a possible terror attack.

Latheef said he had taken steps. “For example, I beefed up security at the Indian High Commission as the information indicated that it could be a target of attackers.”

Considering SDIG Latheef’s evidence before the Commission, yesterday, the Commission observed that it was appropriate to give him the opportunity to appear before the Commission with the assistance of an Attorney-at-Law under Section 16 of the Commission Act and adjourned the hearing until 10 October.