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Why India must take Tiger Memon and Chhota Shakeel's threats seriously

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Prakash Singh
Prakash SinghAug 07, 2015 | 23:13

Why India must take Tiger Memon and Chhota Shakeel's threats seriously

Tiger Memon, the principal architect of the Mumbai blasts of 1993, is alleged to have threatened to avenge his brother Yakub Memon’s hanging on July 30. “Zulm ki inteha ho gayi, zaya nahi jayega (This is the height of injustice, it will not go waste),” Memon said to his mother. Mumbai Police is said to have recorded the conversation, though Maharashtra’s additional chief secretary (Home), KP Bakshi, denied the report. Meanwhile, Justice Deepak Misra of the Supreme Court, who as member of the three judge bench, rejected Yakub’s mercy plea, has received a threatening letter. 

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Dawood’s aide Chhota Shakeel has queered the pitch further. Reacting to Yakub’s hanging, he said: “It is a legal murder and the Company condemns it”, and that “the hanging will have consequences”. How serious are these threats? Minister of state for home, Kiren Rijiju, has downplayed Tiger Memon’s threat and said that India is a strong nation and that the government and the people are quite capable of tackling any situation. “The terrorists regularly do these kinds of activities like calling on telephones and threatening people. The government will take every possible measure in consultation with the security agencies in the present case," he added. 

The minister’s assurances are fine, but the possibility a revenge incident in Mumbai or elsewhere should not be ruled out. In the wake of 26/11, government took several steps to beef up the internal security apparatus of the country. The NIA was set up, NSG hubs were decentralised, coastal security scheme was drawn up, and the states were asked to upgrade their police forces.

However, since then there has been some kind of complacency. Much was expected when the NDA government came to power, but unfortunately not much has been done to enhance the capability of the state police forces, which are in a state of complete disarray. In Maharashtra, the police chief was reduced to the position of a figurehead by a former home minister. The new chief minister has a healthy respect for the institution of DGP, but even he has not been able to contain home department’s predatory incursions in the daily functioning of the police department.

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In Delhi, the tug-of-war between the chief minister and the lieutenant governor is having an adverse effect on the overall functioning of the administration including the police. The frequency with which terror incidents have been happening along our western borders also causes concern. The LeT seems hell bent on creating problems for India with the connivance and even involvement of Pak ISI. Al Qaeda has set up a unit in the country. Islamic State threat is on the horizon; the number of its sympathisers and supporters has crossed the figure of one thousand.

A grim scenario is thus building up. A determined group of desperados could always make their presence felt in this environment with a security grid which shows several chinks in its armour.

Last updated: August 07, 2015 | 23:19
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