Press Statement Issued by
Shri Arun Jaitley
General Secretary, Bharatiya Janata Party

At Hubli

The serial blasts in Jaipur are a grim reminder to the entire nation that India is a soft state that can be attacked by terrorists at will. The BJP strongly condemns these terror attacks which are perpetuated by the enemies of India interested in perpetrating a war on the sovereignty of India. The entire nation mourns the death of the innocent people in these dastardly attacks.

The terrorists have chosen a Tuesday evening and areas in the vicinity of temples, market places and historical monuments so has to cause maximum loss to human life. The object of the terrorists is to create panic, insecurity and tension in Indian society.

The BJP appeals to all sections of the people to remain calm but firm. This is a time to strengthen our national resolve to fight terror. The Indian nation and the Indian people must realise that the war against terror cannot be won with kid gloves but by the determination of its people, and by policies and actions of the government and security agencies.

While the BJP demands early and effective investigation of this anti-national crime, we place for a national debate the following suggestions.

1. A professional and nationalist approach in dealing with terrorism, as opposed to a weak policy linked to promoting vote bank politics, should guide our perspective.
2. Many recent terrorist attacks have been masterminded by HUJI, a Bangladesh-based outfit that is an outsourced organisation of Al-Qaeda and supported by the ISI. Logistical support to these cross-border terrorist groups is provided by local sleeper cells. The large-scale illegal infiltration from Bangladesh adds to the problem. This population intermingles with the locals and is difficult to separate and identify. The political establishment of India must accept that the illegal infiltrators from Bangladesh are not convenient voters but a threat to national security and a pressure on the national economy. Infiltrators from Bangladesh are not economic migrants – they may be potential sleeper cells.
3. The intelligence network – intra-state, inter-state and internationally – needs to be strengthened so that prior information of terrorists becomes available. A terrorist chooses the time and venue of his attack. The element of surprise is built into terrorist tactics. Electronic and telephonic intercepts and advance information on terrorist modules is necessary. The Central government must review this network and strengthen it further. In the war against terror, we must know the enemy in order to defeat it.
4. Punishing terrorists is an important deterrent for terrorism and its perpetrators. We need a strong legal regime to deal with terror. TADA and POTA provided such a regime. Several states have legislated POTA-type laws to deal with organised crime and terrorism after the repeal of POTA. Maharashtra was the first state to have such a law. Rajasthan and Gujarat have also legislated such laws. However, the Central government has not accorded Presidential assent to the laws from both these states.
5. The Central government must immediately enact such a law nationally, and give assent to the laws against organised crime in Rajasthan and Gujarat.
6. Our international diplomacy must focus on coercing and eventually isolating rogue states that allow their territories to be used for building infrastructure for terror. Terrorist groups operating out of Pakistan obviously have India on their radar and Pakistan must be pressured into eliminating these groups.
7. By deliberately delaying the execution of Afzal Guru, the government of India is displaying both a weak-kneed policy and one that is linked to vote bank politics. The government must wake up to the reality of fighting terrorism and change this approach.

The war against terror will be won not by words but by national resolve, political courage and decisive action. This action must be motivated by security concerns and not those of vote bank politics.