New Delhi: The report of two suspected terrorists from Kerala, who were recently killed in Kashmir, has led investigative agencies to conclude that the state is now a major recruitment centre for terrorists. Sources say it’s not religious fanaticism, but monetary incentive that’s turning unemployed youngsters from Kerala to terror.
Alexander Joseph is still in shock after learning of his son's past. Twenty eight-year-old Mohammed Yasir, brought up as Verghese Joseph in Kannur, was shot dead while he trying to infiltrate into Kashmir.
“One day he received a phone call, after which he immediately left for Calicut. Few days later, he returned with a different religion Muslim. He was Muslim. We didn’t like that change. That day he gave us lots of money,” Yasir’s father Alexander Joseph says.
Bapinu has a similar tale to tell. Policemen often visit his home. They say his son Abdul Jabbar helped terrorists from Pakistan.
Many such households across Kerala are weeping for their youngsters today. While majority of them say they had no idea about the activities of their children, perhaps, a few of them did know about it but chose to keep quiet. Perhaps money was playing a vital role here.
Sources say organisations like the Lashkar-e-Toiba pay as much as Rs 25 lakh as start-up money to turn jobless youth into jehadis. They believe a man called Mohammad Faisal to be the kingpin of this terror recruitment cell.
“These fundamentalists are given motor bikes and a monthly allowance. They even give a small amount to their families as a share of their wages,” SP, Kazargode, Subash Babu, says.
For state police, which till now has handled crimes of a smaller nature, terror has certainly come as a rude awakening.
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