Islamabad:
How did Omar Saeed Sheikh, a terrorist in jail in Pakistan, manage to call Pakistani President Asif Zardari after 26/11? Sheikh, who killed journalist Daniel Pearl, pretended, in his call, to be Pranab Mukherjee, who was then India's Foreign Minister.
According to Dawn Newspaper, which broke the story, Sheikh was informed about the attacks on Mumbai by his wife. Sheikh wanted his phone call to heighten tension between India and Pakistan.
So on November 28 last year, just 48 hours after Mumbai was attacked, Shaikh, using a UK-registered mobile SIM, made a phone call to Pranab Mukherjee. He told the minister's office he was the President of Pakistan. After some checks, the operator informed Omar that Pranab would be unable to take the call, and instead would get in touch with him soon.
Omar, posing as Pranab Mukherjee, then made calls to Zardari and then Army Chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani.
According to Dawn sources, President Zardari was put off by Shaikh's cheekiness during the conversation. General Kayani also is said to have been taken aback by the caller's threatening tone.
Omar also tried to talk to the US Secretary of State, but was not put through.
As Pakistani media reported Zardari's reaction and India's denial, investigators traced the calls to a Britain-registered SIM. The mobile and SIM was tracked to Shaikh in jail.
Intelligence agencies allegedly tried to bury this information.