New Delhi, Dec 16 (IANS) The Indian government Wednesday said it has sought a report from its Chicago consulate on the alleged disappearance of papers related to visas given to Mumbai terror conspirators, David Coleman Headley and Tahawwur Rana, and said it will seek access to the duo at some stage.
The government, however, declined to comment on speculation about Headley being a double agent.

“I have sought a factual report from our consul general in Chicago,” Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao told reporters here when asked about the missing visa papers of Headley and Rana as reported in a section of the media.

The Indian consulate in Chicago had issued visas to Rana and Headley to travel to India. Both made several trips between 2006 to 2008 to various cities in India and allegedly helped the Lashkar operatives in Pakistan in planning 26/11 terror attacks.

India’s National Investigation Agency (NIA) is probing the visa application process as part of its investigation into the role of Headley, an American of Pakistani origin, and Rana, a Canadian of Pakistani origin, into the Mumbai attacks.

India has welcomed the investigation and chargesheet filed in a US court against Headley early this month for conducting “extensive surveillance of targets in Mumbai for more than two years” preceding the 26/11 terrorist attack in Mumbai in which 166 people were killed.

Reacting to questions about Headley being a possible double agent, Rao stressed that she is not “in a position to either confirm or deny it as the investigation was still going on.”

“These are issues involving national security and activities of individuals detrimental to our national interest. These issues can’t be discussed through media. It will not be in our interest to do so,” Rao said.

“It’s a definite cause of concern. At some stage we would need access to the two,” Rao replied when asked whether India will seek access from the US authorities to Headley and Rana.

“We attach the highest importance to the unravelling of the conspiracy and seek access to full information coming out from these investigations,” she said.

Rao added that the Indian and American intelligence agencies are in touch “24×7″ and expressed satisfaction at the “very good cooperation” India is getting from the US.

“We have been told that they will cooperate with us at all levels,” she said.