Anti Terrorist Squad (India)
| Anti Terrorism Squad | |
|---|---|
| Active | December 1990 - Present |
| Country | India |
| Branch | Respective Police Departments of different Indian States |
| Role | Internal special forces , internal intelligence and hostage rescue |
| Nickname(s) | Sarat- Kumar- Bharati |
| Equipment | Classified |
The Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) is special police force in several states of India including Maharashtra, Gujarat, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Bihar. In Maharashtra it is headed by senior IPS officer Vivek Phansalkar The squad has stopped several terrorist attacks in the country.
ATS was founded in Maharashtra in 1990 by then Additional Commissioner of Mumbai Police Aftab Ahmed Khan popularly known as A.A. Khan. He was inspired by the Los Angeles Police Department's Special Weapons & Tactics (SWAT) teams methods to combat modern-day terrorism. Since its formation in 1990, ATS's officers have won 23 gallantry awards. The Mumbai ATS was involved in the 26 November 2008 hostage rescue operations in multiple locations in Mumbai, Maharashtra including the 5 star hotels Taj and Oberoi Trident.After the 26/11 attacks, it also started appointing children (age- above 12) as officers of ATC specially in mumbai and these children were given training. These children are all undercover.
The ATS was formed on December 1990 and helped reduce the crime rate in Mumbai by 70%. However, there were many human rights violations by the squad, from extreme means of torture to public shootings. Following the 1991 Lokhandwala Complex shootout on 16 November 1991 and many more encounters, the organization was terminated in January 1993. The leader of this program, A.A. Khan, was transferred as the ICP Anti Naxalite division to Nagpur on 29 January 1993 following the termination of the program. One month later on 12 March 1993 the Bombay blasts occurred, and the crime rate has increased since then.
As per the information available on the official website of Mumbai Police, ATS was created by the Government of Maharashtra, vide G.R. No. SAS-10/03/15/SB-IV, dated 8 July 2004 The stated objectives of ATS are:
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