Right-wing terror radicalising youth like IM: PC

Union Home Minister P Chidambaram on Wednesday said that post 26/11 attacks, there have been just two terror strikes in India -- Pune and Mumbai.

Chidambaram was speaking at the launch of Indian Express journalist Shishir Gupta's book Indian Mujahideen, the enemy within. 

"When we talk about terror attacks in the sense it is being discussed today, in my opinion there have been just two terror attacks post 26/11. There may be arguments that there have been strikes at Varanasi, Delhi, Jama Masjid, etc. While there are similarities between these attacks and the ones in Pune and Mumbai, there are several differences as well," Chidambaram said.

The home minister said that Gupta's book makes note of Indian Mujahideen as the enemy within, but does not refer to the several other enemies within the state.

"In addition to the Indian Mujahideen, there is another enemy within the state -- the extremist right wing terrorist group. The same way that Indian Mujahideen radicalise Muslim youth in India, similar radicalisation is taking place among the extremist right wing organisations," Chidambaram said.

Saying that India lives in one of the most troubled and vulnerable neighbourhoods in the world, Chidambaram said that India is surrounded by 'weak and agile states.'

"Earlier the most troubled neighbourhood was Israel-Palestine-Lebanon area, which has now shifted to south Asia. The number of major terror attacks in the world every year is several dozens. The bulk of these attacks take place in Pakistan, Iraq and Afghanistan. Yes, India is clearly vulnerable. Radicalisation of youths takes place through sophisticated communication. Their communication is so sophisticated that perhaps it is more than what I can understand," Chidambaram said.

Before Chidambaram spoke, Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley had asked how it is that the United States of America has not witnessed a single act of terrorism post 9/11.

"I have often wondered about this. Is it because of their sophistication or better policing? I think it was because political will of the state. In India, every time an insurgent is arrested, you see some section or the other sympathising with the accused. I say we also need a huge political will to overcome terrorism," Jaitley had said.

Countering Jaitley's claims, Chidambaram said, "It is factually incorrect to say that there have been no terror strikes in the US post 9/11. The Fort Hood shooting is just one of them. There are several others, which I will raise in the Rajya Sabha tomorrow if Jaitley raises this point." 

"We are living in a complex world, where the enemy is not an institution that is identified. I agree with Arun (Jaitley), when he says that our capacity building is limited. When you look at it, yes, the police-public ratio is pathetic. But, you have to complement the states for their recruitment. 90,000 constables were recruited last year, which is the highest in any one calendar year. Still, there are 600,000 vacancies," Chidambaram said.

Jaitley referred to Pakistan as 'India-obsessed.'

"We have a state on our western border, which never had any positive agenda. It is India-obsessed. While we focused on development, they focused on us and thus neglected their development. Till about a few years ago, we used to say that even if India was vulnerable to terror attacks, it is not a domestic problem. But it is no longer true. Still, I would say home-grown terrorism is externally-inspired," Jaitley said.

Talking about his book, Shishir Gupta said that since 1992, in Mumbai alone, 708 people have been killed, while 2,285 have been injured in terror strikes.

"Mumbai is the favourite destination for home-grown terrorists. In my book, I have attempted to chart the course of Islamic Jihad in India, which is aided and abetted by neighbouring states," Gupta said.

Saying that the state police force needs to go back to basics, Gupta said that just by modernising the forces is not going to help.

"Osama (Bin Laden) was captured, not by sophisticated weapons, but with the help of a mukhbir. We must not forget our basics. The second thing I want to say to our leaders is not to politicise internal security. Intelligence should not be confused with diplomacy. Denomination politics will make our jobs tougher and that of the terrorists easier," Gupta said.