The Gujarat Police-organised arrest of Ahmedabad blasts mastermind Mufti Abdul Bashar Kasmi may have sent Uttar Pradesh (UP) Police into an overdrive
LUCKNOW: The Gujarat Police-organised arrest of Ahmedabad blasts mastermind Mufti Abdul Bashar Kasmi may have sent Uttar Pradesh (UP) Police into an overdrive, but it has also cast a shadow on their efficacy and competence.
According to a central intelligence report, of the 800 terror cells active in the country, most are in UP. But appallingly, the state still does not have a well-defined anti-terrorist plan.
“It is indeed shocking how a small place such as Azamgarh continues to breed terrorists and UP Police are caught napping after every big catch,” a retired police officer of DG rank says.
The remote district in eastern UP is known as the birthplace of hardened elements such as Dawood Ibrahim and Abu Salem. The list of terrorists it has spawned is long and impressive and also includes Abu Hashim, the first to be arrested under Tada, Shahid Badra, the first Simi chief, and Gorakhpur blast accused Khalid Mujahid and Tariq Qasmi.
Amitabh Yash, who heads UP Police’s special task force, agrees: “Local criminals have managed to forge links with international terrorist outfits to execute some of the most grievous terror attacks in recent times.”
It’s not even as if the signals are not there for everyone to see. “Congregations called in the name of Islam attract millions from all over the country and it is here that the venom of terrorism is spewed. But for reasons linked to vote-bank politics, no one in the government dares to even raise an eyebrow,” an intelligence department official says.
Same goes for monitoring activities in madrassas in east UP, especially those that have mushroomed in recent times along the UP-Nepal border. “It’s such a sensitive issue that if someone even broaches the subject in a meeting, he is made to feel like a criminal,” the official told DNA.
For instance, the Alimi Ijtema hosted by the Tablighi Jamaat in Shervan village of Azamgarh district on December 31, 2007, was attended by about 50 lakh Muslims. The gathering was enough to send alarm signals to UP Police and intelligence departments. But no follow-up action was taken.
g_deepak@dnaindia.net
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