Deal with terrorist attacks with an iron fist
Soon after the Narendra Modi administration took charge in May, it became clear that it would not be ‘business as usual’ in the Government's handling of relations with troublesome neighbours and its management of the economy. One assumes that this welcome change in attitude will also be seen in the Union Government's approach to matters of national security. In the past six months alone, India has suffered at least four major security incidents: At the top of the list is the October 2 bomb blast in Burdwan, West Bengal. Two suspected terrorists were killed and a third injured in the explosion which blew the lid off the State’s growing jihadi network.
In fact, the matter became a source of much embarrassment for India after it was found that the Burdwan terrorists were in fact members of the Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh, an organisation that has been conspiring to topple the Sheikh Hasina Government in Dhaka and is known to have a large network of sympathisers in Bengal. The next big terror attack was in the Maoist-infested dense forests of Sukma in Chhattisgarh. On December 1, the Red ultras, using locals as human shields, ambushed a CRPF squad and killed 13 security personnel, including two officers. Four days later, militants attacked an Army camp in Uri in Jammu & Kashmir, killing 11 security personnel. Then, last week Bodo militants in Assam went on a murderous rampage, killing more than 50 people and fuelling a vicious cycle of blood-letting. And, as if all this wasn't enough, on Sunday, a bomb exploded in Bangalore, killing one.
On the face of it, these attacks may not have much in common. They have been carried out in different contexts by different players. If the Burdwan blast and possibly the Bangalore attack were examples of jihadi terror, the bloodbaths in Sukma and Uri were the result of militant movements; and the massacre in Assam, the product of a poorly-handled insurgency. However, at the core of them all lies one common element: Threat to the life and safety of Indian citizens. And it is feared that this threat will take on larger proportions in the coming months. In the immediate future, the visit of US President Barack Obama for India's Republic Day celebration could be the catalyst — Pakistan-sponsoredjihadi groups will seek to make their presence felt by disrupting the festive atmosphere. After that, India will have to brace itself for the impact of Nato's drawdown in Afghanistan.
On Sunday, Western forces formally ended their 13-year-long Afghan mission, and, even though a few thousand soldiers will stay back, the resultant security vacuum will be felt across the region. Already, Taliban attacks in Afghanistan have gone up, and we’ll soon know if out-of-job jihadis will return to Kashmir. The Modi Government will also have to keep a close eye on trouble-makers within the country: The insurgency in the North-East, for example, is a matter of grave concern. Quick-fix solutions by past Governments have bought us some time and temporary peace, but, as Assam stands proof, a long-term solution is yet to be crafted. Similarly, India's counter-insurgency record against the Maoists has also been patchy — there have been successes but the ultras are still one of India’s biggest internal security threats.
