Northeast exodus: India to take up the issue with Pakistan

New Delhi: India will take up the issue with Pakistan after Union Home Secretary RK Singh said that bulk of the rumours that triggered panic among Indians from Northeast in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra were sourced from the neighbouring country.

India says Pakistan is the source for doctored pictures that sparked violence in Mumbai and led to the exodus from Bangalore.

The Ministry of Home Affairs has found out that a majority of the doctored MMS clips and threatening SMSes originated in Pakistan.

The big questions:

- Was this unprovoked violence a result of mischief originating from across the border?

- Was this mass exodus a result of a conspiracy that had its roots in Pakistan?

- Is the government conveniently laying the blame on an easy target?

Home secretary R K singh believes that the Intelligence Bureau and state police have evidence to prove a Pakistan connection to the doctored photographs which incited Mumbai Violence and the subsequent MMS which led to a spate of attacks in Pune and Bangalore.

“Morphed Images and false messages were circulated to incite people and a bulk of them originated from Pakistan,” RK Singh said.

The Home Ministry has asked search engine major Google to provide the IP address and other details of the ID from where the doctored photographs were first hosted. The government has also arrested one person who could lead to the source of the doctored MMS clips and SMSes.

Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi said he suspected from the very beginning that foreign forces were behind the rumours which forced thousands of people of northeast to flee Karnataka and some other cities. "I was saying from the very beginning that foreign forces were behind this," he said.

The Home Secretary is candid enough to admit that Pakistan may deny Indian government's allegations. Yet MHA on its part has banned close to 100 websites for carrying objectionable material and has also assured that the source of the SMS campaign will be identified in the next few hours. The question is - will this assure the Indians from Northeastern states and stop their exodus?

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