NEW DELHI, 26 December 2002 — India has canceled the permission given to Emirates Airlines for 16 special flights during the holiday season, news reports said yesterday.
The Indian Civil Aviation Ministry is reported to have denied permission after the United Arab Emirates refused to deport wanted gangster Anees Ibrahim to India, the Indian Express reported.
Ibrahim is one of the main accused in the 1993 Bombay serial blasts, which killed 257 people. He is accused of planning the blasts, training saboteurs and distributing arms. He is also wanted in 22 other cases under the Maharashtra Control for Organized Crime Act.
The bomb blasts were in apparent retaliation for the murder of hundreds of Muslims in riots that broke out across India in December 1992 after Hindu fanatics tore down the Babri Masjid in the northern Uttar Pradesh state.
"The Emirates request came up for consideration soon after Dubai allowed Anees to fly out to Pakistan even as India’s request for extradition was pending. There was no way that the Dubai-based airline would have been allowed additional flights," a senior ministry official was quoted as saying.
The airlines had initially been given permission to fly special flights to clear the heavy rush during Christmas and New Year.
An Emirates spokesperson said that the airline was trying to re-allocate passengers with booking on its scheduled flights. At present, Emirates operates 41 scheduled flights weekly between Dubai and the Indian cities of Delhi, Bombay and Madras. It also flies into the southern Indian cities of Hyderabad and Cochin.
India believes Ibrahim is still in Dubai despite reports he had been deported to Pakistan. India’s Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) will make contacts with authorities in the United Arab Emirates for the repatriation of Ibrahim, CBI Director P.C. Sharma told the Press Trust of India news agency.
"We have not received any information from the Dubai authorities so far and we presume that he (Ibrahim) is still in their custody," Sharma was quoted saying.
Dubai media had earlier this month reported that Ibrahim had been deported to Pakistan, leading the Indian Foreign Ministry to express concern. Pakistan denied Ibrahim was in the country.
India’s Deputy Prime Minister Lal Krishna Advani had announced that Ibrahim had been held on an international Interpol warrant after arriving in Dubai from Pakistan on Nov. 29.
But the Indian investigation agency director made clear there was no agreement at this point to extradite Ibrahim to India.
"So far we have received only one communication from Interpol-Abu Dhabi that states that an Indian national identified as Anees Ibrahim has been detained. Hence, the CBI may forward an extradition request for Ibrahim," Sharma said. (Agencies)
