Official sources said this suspect ship came to Mumbai port either November 19 or 21 but left Wednesday. It is not clear whether this ship docked at the port or discharged its cargo at the anchorage — the inner anchorage in Mumbai is three-four nautical miles from the port while the outer anchorage is 25-30 nautical miles.

Earlier, it was suspected that M V Alpha was the mother ship that brought in the terrorists but the Coast Guard, which boarded the ship, found its papers in order.

At Macchimar Nagar in Colaba in Mumbai, Bharat Tandel said he saw 10 “gore-chikne” young men who came ashore in an inflatable raft around 9 pm Wednesday. “They must have all been in the age group 25-30. Each was carrying two bags and had heavy school bags strapped on their shoulders,” he said. “When I tried to speak to one of them, he said ‘tension mein hoon (I am tense)’. They walked away hurriedly.”

According to Tandel, eight men get off while the remaining two took off on the black-yellow raft towards Nariman Point. This raft, abandoned at Nariman Point, was later dragged to Macchimar Nagar by one of the local boys late Wednesday night.

Bharat Tamare, an assistant supervisor at the Taj Hotel, was on his way to the hotel for the night shift. “I stopped the moment I saw a boat pulling in. I asked them what they were up to. One boy told me they were students,” said Tamare.

Damodar Tandel, president of Akhil Maharashtra Macchimar Kriti Samiti, said he had received information about the possibility of arms landing on Mumbai shores from Gujarat. He said he had had immediately written a letter to DCP (Port Zone) Madhukar Kohe.

... contd.