Four months after the involvement of American terror suspect David Headley in 26/11 attacks came to light, filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt's son Rahul Bhatt is still to come to terms with the "betrayal of faith" by the US national whom he now calls a "terror jackal" and an "absolute monster".
"This incident has shaken me terribly. I have lost faith in everyone. I don't even trust my girlfriend now. I have started suspecting people in my family. I can't trust anymore. I have become like a typical policeman who looks at everyone with suspicion...Its paranoia," says 28-year-old Bhatt.
Bhatt, who is a nutritionist and a fitness professional, said the Headley incident has made him "xenophobic" and he has lost faith in all human relationships. Whatever has happened of late has also made him "wiser", he said.
"I have become a xenophobic... I have stopped trusting people and I am extremely suspicious of foreigners ...It is xenophobia that I have developed. So now, my guard is up and I am in a constant state of awareness and alertness because of the bizarre incident," said Bhatt who was questioned by security agencies after it emerged that Headley had known him during his stay in Mumbai.
To a question about his association with Headley, a sudden agitation is quite evident in Bhatt's voice. "Did I know Headley? The answer is a yes and a no. The David Headley that I knew then was a different man and the David who has now emerged now is a different man...The absolute monster."
Bhatt, a budding actor, said during his conversations with Headley, there was no chance that he could have been doubted of having had any terror links. "My father was making a film on terrorism and I was getting an American perspective from him (Headley).
"He was not just any American. He was an intelligent man. He was a well-informed man. A man with high IQ. And like I said in my dreams I still find it tough to believe that he was not only a terrorist but a terror jackal...and you imagine the betrayal... he turns out to be the terrorist jackal. An absolute monster."
Bhatt, who has been questioned more than twice by National Investigation Agency, probing the role of Headley and his Pakistani-Canadian associate Tahawwur Rana, said that Headley had called him a month after the 26/11 attack.
"A month after 26/11 when he had called me and sounded very concerned. He was a great actor. I would say, imagine the way he fooled me...acting very concerned whether me and my family members and Vilas (Varak) and his family members are all okay and everything is safe...Yeah, that was one month after 26/11. He made a phone call," recalled Bhatt.
Headley, who was arrested in Chicago on October 3 last, has been charged by the FBI with conspiracy of 26/11 terror strike in Mumbai.
