Enough material to hold him “undesirable” in India, not enough to dub him a terror suspect. That’s how far the case of detained US national Winston Marshal Carmichael has progressed.
US agencies have informed India that New York resident
Carmichael has criminal cases related to drugs and robbery registered against him. However, Indian authorities have not found a terror link even after sustained questioning.
Sources told DNA once Carmichael is deported to the US after verifying all details about him, Indian agencies might issue a look out circular (LOC). After the issuance of LOC, Carmichael would not be allowed to enter India again. Details of his passport will be provided at all entry points.
Sources said he was “undesirable” in India, even though they have not found any terror link so far.
Indian authorities have yet to find out whether the passport (number 422836049) used by Carmichael is original. They are trying to find out where else he went in India apart from Delhi. So far, agencies know he came to India twice — once on October 7, 2009, and then on January 27. On the first visit, he stayed in Delhi for five days before leaving for Pakistan via Attari on October 12. He stayed in Pakistan for two months and left the country on January 7 for Bangladesh capital Dhaka on a flight from Karachi.
He returned to India on January 27. A convert from Christianity to Islam, he had been preaching at various madrassas and introduced himself as a theologist. He has accepted being a member of the tabligi jamaat.
Carmichael was detained in the early hours of February 10 when he was about to board a Qatar Airways flight to Doha after CISF recovered a 4.3-by-1.5-inch knife concealed in a herbal plant, shilajit, from his handbag. The knife, though, was too small to be considered in the category of a weapon.
The US embassy in Delhi was informed about the detention, after which an FBI team visited and took details from Carmichael.
