Click to play videoIndia seems to have become one of softest targets of terror outfits. The last few years have seen terrorists striking at will, causing massive loss to life and property and also making the country one of the most bombed in the world.
Since 2005, there have been 11 major blasts in which hundreds have been killed and the irony is that not one culprit has so far been brought to book.
Political parties too seem to have found the time to trade charges. After the Bangalore and Ahmedabad blasts last week, senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Sushma Swaraj claimed on Monday that Ahmedabad blasts were a conspiracy by the Congress to divert attention from the cash-for-vote scandal in Parliament.
With other blast investigations too not yielding much result and almost all of them pointing that the attacks had an imprint of local terror groups, Face the Nation debated if terror was a homegrown phenomenon.
Gujarat Health Minister Jay Narayan Vyas, Congress Spokesperson Manish Tewari, Associate Editor, The Hindu Praveen Swami and Social Activist Shabnam Hashmi participated in the debate moderated by Sagarika Ghose.
Vyas, whose state faced the fury of terrorists on Saturday, set the ball rolling. He backed Swaraj’s claims and blamed the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance Government of not letting the BJP-ruled states of enacting laws to deal with terrorist acts.
“I would try to out the facts in order. First, is there any doubt about what has been alleged about trying to buy over the MPs and the charges, which have been levied? Second, let us also understand that there are in very close succession in two BJP ruled states - Karnataka and Gujarat. Third, there have been blasts in Hyderabad, Karnataka and also Mumbai. These three states have different laws to deal with this kind of terrorism. Why Gujarat and Rajasthan are not permitted to have similar laws despite the Gujarat Assembly clearing a bill twice and the UPA Government not budging and permitting Gujarat and Rajasthan which are border states, where they say they were suspecting terror attacks, what is it that is stopping them from giving the states laws which can act as a deterrent. I think they have to answer these questions,” he said.
Tiwari responded with a scathing attack on Swaraj and said the Congress behaved in a responsible manner.
“I think the BJP has gone mad. They invariably swing between the sublime and the ridiculous, but this time, they have bettered their track record of preposterousness. It is completely atrocious to make such a statement. The Congress never said that the BJP Government in Bangalore or the BJP Government in Gujarat is responsible. We never did any finger pointing. Here for a senior BJP leader to stoop to such level not only smacks of desperation, it goes to show that they have completely lost their mental balance. I am really disgusted that such a statement could come out of them,” Tiwari said.
He also said that when Congress repealed POTA, all the substantive provisions of POTA which were essential to deal with terrorism were exculpated and put into the Prevention of Unlawful Activities Act. “I don't understand why the BJP has never made an attempt to study it. Also if the terrorists were reading the POTA and IPC and then carrying out these attacks then these attacks would have never ever happened. The issue is preemption,” he said.
Swami pointed out blame game would lead to nowhere and that both the parties must strengthen the investigating agencies.
“There is no doubt that we need to enhance our intelligence and investigation capabilities. We are trying to fight terrorism when not one state police has state of the art criminal intelligence database or forensic capability. I would like to hear from either party as to how much money they have spent in the states they govern to improve the situation. If we look through the figures then there isn't one police force in this country, which is up to scratch. Sadly blasts after blasts we get caught into this polemical debate and there is zero action,” Swami said.
So do the politicians have any answer to the frequent terror strikes? Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi has dealt with situation calmly and hasn't indulged in rhetoric. He has called for a national consensus in how to fight terror and how Centre and states could fight terror?
Shabnam Hashmi, however, blamed the state for abdication its responsibility and creating an atmosphere of fear.
“I think he (Modi) has done what he wanted to do. So now there is need for him to be hyper. There are three things. One, the only justification for the state to be there now once they have sold off their responsibility including education and health to the private owners is security. So there has to be an atmosphere always in the country that people feel that there is only the state, which can save them. So there are attacks and attacks and I would take you back to 2000, to Chattisinghpura in Kashmir where 35 Sikhs were killed. Immediately after that five people were arrested and killed and it was said that they were from across the border. After that the bodies had to be exhumed and it was found that it was carried out by the state to show Clinton that terrorism was a very big problem in India. So I am saying that investigation assumes that it is some Muslim doing it,” she pointed out.
Hashmi continued saying that it was the innocent Muslim who in under the scanner.
“After every terror attack there are hundreds of innocent Muslims who are targetted, who are picked up and tortured. On the other hand we look at this and the last two attacks then ammonium nitrate reminds me of Tenkasi, Tamil Nadu. RSS was involved directly and arrests were made. It reminds me of Thane and again RSS involved. We are closing our eyes to the Hindu right wing being involved in these terrorist attacks. And there is enough evidence available. I have personally handed over the paper to the Home Minister of this country. But unfortunately only Muslims are targeted,” she added.
Swami claimed the all terror-related acts during the past few years hade been homegrown. He pointed out the existence of local groups since 1993. “Don't forget the serial bombings in Mumbai that year were carried out in retaliation to the communal pogrom in the city. Every terrorist strike right through the 90s and in this decade has seen Indian nationals involved. You use the term homegrown. Yes, every attack had been home grown,’ he said.
How does investigation need to change?
“I don’t think investigators have had a closed mind. The reason why Shabnam has been able to talk about Hindu groups carrying out various strikes or attempting them is because the same police force was investigating these attacks and got a hold of them. I find it peculiar and ironic that both the BJP and critic agree that there is some sort of big, dark conspiracy to this whole thing,” Swami said.
For once both the Congress and BJP representative seemed to agree.
“Absolutely. We are prepared to work with anybody to see that these terrorists are hunted down and brought to justice. That is why we have appealed to all the political parties that the time has come to have a federal agency to combat terror given the fact that not only are attacks taking place in India but Indian assets abroad are also being targetted. Today you have a situation where the conspiracy is hatched somewhere else, it is executed at another place and you find the perpetrators of the attack in the third place. Police may have jurisdictional issues,” Tiwari said.
“Our honourable Chief Minister has also said the same thing. Nobody is denying that,” Vyas added.
The debate concluded with most panelists agreeing that terror had become a homegrown phenomenon.
Final results of the SMS/Web poll:
Yes: 74 per cent
No: 26 per cent
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