Outgunned Mumbai police hampered by First World War weapons

Outgunned Mumbai police hampered by First World War weapons

Indian police who bore the brunt of last week’s attacks on Mumbai had defective bulletproof vests, First World War-era firearms and insufficient weapons training, police sources have told The Times.

Many wore plastic helmets and body protectors designed for sticks and stones, rather than bullets, as they fought highly trained militants armed with AK47 rifles, pistols, grenades and explosives.

The contrast between them was vividly illustrated yesterday by CCTV footage of two militants attacking Chhatrapati Shivaji terminus, Mumbai’s main railway station, last Wednesday.

It shows the gunmen spraying automatic fire while two constables cower behind pillars, one armed with a .303 rifle similar to the Lee-Enfield weapons used by British troops in the First World War.

I think I already pointed this out in my observations here. A well placed shot with a Lee-Enfield trumps wild spray from an AK-47 but alas the lack of training. From the live video of the event there seemed to be either a lack of will to engage the shooters or maybe they were following orders to hold until the "commando's" showed up.