India has been increasingly facing Islamic terrorism since the inception of the UPA Government and it has scaled to new hights in the past twelve months. The Agartala blasts on Wednesday (October 1, 2008) not only exposed the chinks in our national security but it also brought to the fore the abject failure of the UPA government on all fronts. Preliminary investigations into Agartala blasts have indicated that it is the handiwork of terrorists from the ISI backed and Bangladesh based Harkat-ul-Jihad Al Islami (HuJI).
Bangladesh has become the breeding ground of young recruits for various terrorist groups including HuJI, which is considered as Al Qaeda'soperating arm in South Asia. HuJI has been consolidating its position in Bangladesh for the past four years or so and it boasts a membership of more than 15,000 activists.
Now the leaders of the HuJI have floated the Islamic Democratic Party (IDP) with permission from the caretaker government in Dhaka. This could have serious implications on India'sinternal security as the perpetrators of terrorist attacks in India are trying to gain political legitimacy in Bangladesh.
The BJP expresses grave concern over these developments and urges the Government of India to register its concern and protest with the Bangladesh Government for harbouring terrorists and anti-India activists who are now trying to hide in the garb of political activists.
HuJI has been using illegal immigrants from Bangladesh to carry out serial blasts in several cities in India. BJP and other nationalist forces in India have been repeatedly warning the Centre for its inaction against the influx of illegal immigrants into India.
The ideology of Left parties is no less responsible for rampant illegal immigration from Bangladesh into India which has been quite supportive to infiltrators. Agartala blasts have come as a rude shock to the Left ruled States as well because it indicates that terror follows no ideology or religion. Terrorism is an anti-India design which has Islamic militant hues to colour its gory sins.
Illegal immigrants from Bangladesh form the backbone of nearly more than 5000 sleeper cells existing in India. If the UPA Government is serious about combating terrorism and resolving the issue of illegal immigration in India then it has to come up with an integrated action plan, firm resolve and stringent laws.
Few months ago, the National Security Advisor Shri M K Narayanan claimed that the Intelligence agencies of the country had unearthed nearly 800 sleeper modules in the country. But the growing number of serial blasts clearly shows either the Government made false claims or the number of sleeper modules increased at a much faster speed than the Government could uncover.
Not surprisingly the former Deputy National Security Advisor, Shri Satish Chandra immediately questioned the authenticity of these tall claims made by the NSA and even demanded concrete evidence from him.
BJP is also deeply concerned over the fact that the nefarious designs of Islamic terrorism have now spread to the North eastern States. These states are already facing the problem of insurgency and this double whammy could compound the problems of the people living in this region.
Recently a senior Union Minister went to the extent of demanding Indian citizenship for all illegal immigrants in India. Such political posturing adversely affects the moral of our security forces which are already working under tremendous pressure and also faced with lack of adequate and stringent laws. BJP president Rajnath Singh has demanded for stringent laws in the country, as existing laws have been proved inadequate to counter the challenges posed by terrorism and illegal immigration.
The BJP demands that there should be compulsory registration of citizens and non-citizens living in India. The UPA Government should also prepare a National Register of Citizens and also issue a photo identity card to all Indian citizens, as it would help the Government in detecting and deporting illegal immigrants from the country.
The process of registration and issuing of photo identity cards should be initiated on a priority basis in the States like West Bengal, Assam and Tripura which have international border with Bangladesh
In the meantime taking a cue from the agreement between India and Bangladesh signed on March 25, 1971, the UPA Government should deport all illegal immigrants who came to India from Bangladesh after March 1971.
(FOC)
