26/11 Attack: UPA government was surprised by the attack, it was seen as weak even in taking decisions... Former cabinet secretary revealed

KM Chandrasekhar, who was a cabinet secretary in the Manmohan government, has made a big disclosure about the 26/11 Mumbai attack. He has said that at the time of the attack, the central government did not know what steps to take at the central level. This exposed the lack of decision-making capability in the central government. He has said that after the attack there was no real clarity as to who would do what at the central level.

Former cabinet secretary KM Chandrasekhar in his book 'As good as my word' has also made several revelations about the position of National Security Advisor (NSA) in the UPA government. He has said that a situation of confusion had arisen after the Mumbai attack.

There was confusion in the management of security issues

Former cabinet secretary Chandrashekhar has written in his book that the post of National Security Advisor was the right decision of the government. However, not keeping him independent in security matters led to confusion. Chandrasekhar said, the government has divided the responsibilities and powers between the NSA and the cabinet secretary. This has led to confusion as to what is the role and authority of the NSA and the Cabinet Secretary in security-related matters. He said, the 26/11 attacks also exposed the weakness of capability in decision-making in a grave emergency.

The Cabinet secretary does not know the ground reality

The former cabinet secretary said, generally intelligence agencies share the information received from an area with the Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Defense, or the Armed Forces. She does not inform the cabinet secretary about this. In such a situation, the cabinet secretary does not have any information about the ground reality of that area. In such a situation, the cabinet secretary cannot take any action without sufficient information. Be it a terrorist attack, or a militant attack.

What happened during the 26/11 attack?

KM Chandrasekhar wrote in his book that when the terrorist attack happened in Mumbai, there was no clarity about who would do what at the central level. Law and order is a state subject under the Indian Constitution and central intervention can only take place at the request of the concerned state government. In such a situation, a situation of confusion has arisen due to this act. He wrote, I wanted an immediate end to this crisis, but I had neither intelligence nor ground reality to know what was happening in Mumbai till late at night.

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