He Was At 'Ground Zero' In Kashmir - Inside Story Of Ghazi Baba Encounter

The early 2000s were a tumultuous period for Jammu and Kashmir. The state was a battleground - terrorist attacks were on the rise amid anti-India sentiments fuelled by separatist leaders, and the political scepticism toward the rest of the country made things worse. It was during this volatile phase that Narendra Nath Dhar Dubey, an officer in the Border Security Force, was posted on ground zero in Kashmir, safeguarding the citizens.

On December 13, 2001, the heart of India's democracy, the Parliament, was attacked by five Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorists, killing nine people, and the mastermind, Rana Tahir Nadeem, aka Ghazi Baba, became India's most wanted.

The operation to track and hunt Ghazi Baba lasted for two years, ending with his encounter in 2003, making it one of the most significant anti-terror operations in India's recent history, but a story that remained largely unknown for almost two decades. NN Dubey, a key figure in the operation to kill Ghazi Baba, spoke to NDTV, sharing the untold story of the encounter and how his shirt saved his life.

Ghazi Baba was the mastermind of the 2001 Parliament attacks

'A Difficult Phase For Security Forces'

Narendra Nath Dhar Dubey, a Deputy Inspector General in the BSF, gave a context to the situation in the region in the early 2000s, which was marred by ambushes on security forces, an era of suicide bombings and attacks on civilians.

"The start of the millennium from 2000 onwards has been very difficult for the security forces to handle the terrorism in Kashmir. We (security forces) were facing a multifaceted battle because that was the phase when the era of suicide attacks had just started in Kashmir," Mr Dubey said.

The officer said Delhi Police, the Special Cell, the Army and the BSF were on a hunt to track down Ghazi Baba since attacks on security forces and civilians were a part of the module. The officer said the "Maximum cop killings in Jammu and Kashmir happened between 2001 and 2003, and protecting civilians, jawans (soldiers) was important because any casualty had a demoralising effect".

Ghazi Baba, who was from Pakistan, was one of the most dreaded terrorists operating in the state. He masterminded the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly, Parliament attack, and two car blasts at the army headquarters in Srinagar. He was also reportedly involved in the kidnapping of six foreigners in Pahalgam in 1995.

Mr Dubey said that getting local support was another challenge because there was a fear that "you could get killed by the terrorists", and in the case of Ghazi Baba, it was much needed because he chose one of the difficult areas of Kashmir - Ganderbal, Zakura and the Tral mountains to hide and small troops can't go in to kill him.

NN Dubey, in his combat uniform, holding a Kalashnikov
Photo Credit: Narendra Nath Dhar Dubey

"The area is difficult, and it was close to the line of control and used to involve a huge operation of multiple battalions if you want to trace out one person. It was a physically, topographically and geographically difficult task," he said,

The Border Security Force was not just a guardian of the border, but also fought terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir from the late 1980s. The force had well-established itself in the region for over 15 years, carrying out its operations with the Army and Jammu and Kashmir Police, before handing it over to the Central Reserve Police Force much later in 2005.

The role of the BSF has been largely underappreciated despite establishing a strong foothold in the region, when special units of the Army, like the Rashtriya Rifles, were not even established until 1997. From the late 1980s to at least 1997, the BSF, along with other troops, was a premier counter-insurgency force in the region. The force also played a significant role in the release of Rubaiyya Sayeed, daughter of former Home Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, who was kidnapped by JKLF terrorists in 1989.

'We Found Him In An Unprepared Position'

At a time when drones and advanced surveillance and reconnaissance systems were non-existent, there was a heavy reliance on human intelligence, especially in the dense jungles of Kashmir. The challenges were not just geographical for the BSF but also logistical.

Mr Dubey, who was in the face of action, said that "In the late 90s, the maximum resources were having Maruti Gypsies and Tata vehicles. And there was no bulletproof vehicle. So, how did we improvise the vehicle? We used to put a piece of wood on the side. That's the maximum we could do and filled sandbags, which made the payload of the Gypsy double to its load and we used to put the layers on the bottom, on the floor of the Gypsy, on the rear side and there was no bulletproof plate on the front end."

"Bulletproof jackets were not in sufficient numbers in those days. The person who used to enter that zone of tracing and killing had a jacket. Helmets were there 100%, and in the first phase, there were no rocket launchers or automatic grenade launchers. They came later in 1997." The BSF was physically establishing a foothold in the region, and Mr Dubey said, "Knowing every village, area, locality details of those who surrendered and sympathisers, etc., was crucial."

After the Parliament attacks, the Delhi Police had arrested an accused who gave information about a place where other handlers were reportedly hiding. The cops recced the place in a helicopter.

Mr Dubey shared that the BSF had arrested the Deputy Chief of Jaish, who had a complete idea of the den of terrorists.

"We worked it out very meticulously, and invested almost two and a half days to zero in on the point where Ghazi Baba must have been hiding. We chose a very odd hour to rush to raid his hideout without allowing him to escape...We raided the house post midnight and found him in a very unprepared position."

Trapped From All Sides, No Escape Possible

"He was not sure that we would have an exact idea of where he was hiding...and we trapped him inside his den, all escape routes were covered and he had not other option other than to fire back at us," said Mr Dubey, who was commanding the operation and led from the front. The officer was the first to enter the house and was welcomed by a volley of gunfire and grenades.

The troops searched the ground and the first floor. Upon reaching the second floor, they found the house vacant, but Mr Dubey got suspicious when he noticed two wardrobes. He ordered his men to hit the mirror fixed on the wardrobes. Upon hitting it, a trapped door opened, and terrorists opened fire.

"Everything happened in lightning speed, but we did not give anyone a chance to get into a defensive position or hide; everything was just frontal." In the gunfight, BSF lost Constable Balbir Singh, a young soldier who jumped in front of Mr Dubey when terrorists fired on his commanding officer. Mr Dubey also suffered multiple bullet injuries.

Mr Dubey had a shattered arm, bullet wounds to his leg and armpit. The officer led his men despite serious injuries.

He said his "Condition was bad at that time, but before we got all these injuries, Ghazi Baba and his associate Rashid Bhai were killed...Rashid, a terrorist from Pakistan, was killed in the process of escaping from one of the balconies." Ghazi Baba was killed on the exit of the hideout in Noorbagh, Srinagar.

The BSF found 20 RDX bombs, 22 detonators, four rockets and a satellite telephone from Ghazi Baba's hideout.

Remembering Constable Balbir Singh - A Brave Soldier

Balbir Singh came from the Shekhauti area of Rajasthan. He was a young soldier in his early 20s who was highly motivated, a father of a one-year-old and a hero who lived up to the motto of BSF - 'Jeevan Paryant Kartavya' (Duty Unto Death).

Remembering Balbir Singh, Mr Dubey said, "Balbir was very young and he had a one-year-old child, andand just two days before the operation, the young man called me and he had just returned from leave and he was not part of my team for the operation...that day he approached the Batallion Havildar Major that I want to be part of the raiding team and the next morning when we set out for the operation, I had forgotten my jacket and my wife and had handed over to him and that was the last memory. He was very young, and he had a very long life to live, which was curtailed by a fraction of a second."

Mr Dubey and Constable Singh suffered injuries when terrorists started firing, but Balbir Singh, in disregard of his safety, jumped in front of his commanding officer to save him and took the bullets when a terrorist tried to escape and opened fire at Mr Dubey; Constable Singh suffered injuries to his abdomen and was killed in action.

Balbir Singh was posthumously awarded the Shaurya Chakra, India's third-highest peacetime gallantry award. NN Dubey was conferred with Kirti Chakra, the second-highest peacetime gallantry award.

President APJ Abdul Kalam conferring the Kirti Chakra to NN Dubey at a ceremony in Rashtrapati Bhavan

'It Was A Very Lucky Save'

Mr Dubey suffered eight bullet injuries on his body and had a shattered arm. He showed the resilience of a soldier in the face of action. The officer narrowly escaped death when the bullets hit the steel commendation rolls pinned on his shirt and deflected, saving his chest and his life.

Mr Dubey, a battle-hardened soldier, was awarded the Director General's Commendation Roll (DGCR) thrice for outstanding service. The 1x1 steel insignia is pinned to the shirt and is worn as a badge of honour. On the night of the operation, Mr Dubey was wearing the shirt, with DGCRs pinned to his uniform, on top of which he wore his parajacket. He was shot in the arm multiple times, but was confused about how they did not hit his chest.

Mr Dubey said, "I was evacuated to the hospital...The next day, when I came back from my anaesthesia effect, even then, I couldn't understand. On the third day, I was just wondering why these 2-3 shots on my armpit should have been on the chest. So, I was not able to solve that mystery. My wife came with the crushed steel insignia, which was found by the washerman who was washing the blood-sunk uniform after being handed it over by the operation theatre."

Bullet marks on Mr Dubey's uniform. He suffered eight bullet injuries in the encounter.

"There was a pin in the blood-stained uniform. The washerman washed it and got pricked by the pin in his hand. He gave it to his wife. So, the complete plate of the pin was crushed. I was lucky enough that my complete chest-left heart area was protected, and the bullets were deflected on the armpit. So, it was a very lucky save."

The life of Narendra Nath Dhar Dubey, Kirti Chakra, is being presented on the big screen, with Emraan Hashmi playing the role of the BSF officer who led his men in the face of action to kill Ghazi Baba. Based on true events, the film 'Ground Zero' became the first movie to get a premiere in Srinagar after 38 years.