The Times of India 29 Novembre 2008

MUMBAI: Bharat Tamore, assistant supervisor at the Taj, was getting ready for his night-shift that started at 10pm.

A Koli by birth, he lives in Machchimar Nagar, Cuffe Parade. As was his routine, he stepped out towards the sea to feel the cool breeze on his face. At around 9.15pm, he left home and walked towards the jetty. As there was a one-day cricket match on TV, there were no locals, except for one man lying down on the jetty. But something unusual caught his attention:

"It was a small inflatable raft, not usually seen in our parts where fishermen ply only small boats. In the darkness, I saw eight young men stepping out of the raft, two at a time. They jumped into the waters, and picked up a haversack. They bent down again, and came up carrying two more haversacks, one in each hand,'' said Tamore. The bags, he thought, looked very heavy.
They were in their 20s, fair-skinned and tall, clad in jeans and jackets.

"The man who was lying down shouted at them, asking what they were doing there. So one of them shouted back ‘Tussle mut le '. When they approached me, I also asked them who they were, and what were they doing there. One of them said ‘student hai’.”

Tamore said he found their presence unusual, but as they said they were students, and were carrying haversacks, he didn't think much about it. He thought they were youngsters returning from a picnic.

"Two of them got back into the raft, started the motor, and immediately shot off. The other eight simply melted into the darkness,'' he said.

Tamore made his way to work. As usual, he signed in, and changed into his uniform. When he heard the gunshots, he thought them to be firecrackers, coming from the Shamiana restaurant. "I heard the sounds again, and this time they were rapid. I stepped out and saw staff running, shepherding guests out of the building,'' said Tamore.

It immediately struck him that it was the same youngsters whom he had seen less than 15 minutes ago at Machchimar Nagar. But there was nothing he could do about it. "Finally at around 4am, we were shepherded out of the hotel. I came home, and immediately informed the police,'' said Tamore.

Source >  The Times of India | nov 28