A classic case of minority appeasement

Unanimously Kerala Assembly seeks
dreaded terrorist’s release

Only recently BJP National President Shri Rajnath Singh branded UPA as United Platform of Appeasement and said that it could go to any length to put even national security in danger. It has been proved to be true. That the Congress, UPA partners and the Left parties were hand in glove with each other in competing for minority appeasement was proved beyond doubt when the Congress-led UDF government in Kerala moved a resolution for the release of dreaded terrorist Abdul Nasser Madani not only charged with harbouring the blasts accused, including Ooma Babu alias Majid and others allegedly involved in serial explosions that shook Coimbatore in February 1998 just ahead of the arrival of Shri L. K. Advani for an election rally killing 59 and maiming another 200 innocent persons, but also with liaisoning with Pakistan’s ISI for terror training of Al Umma activists. Nothing more needs to be said about the sincerity of UPA and the Left in fighting terrorism, particularly those having links with ISI. Let the people make their own decision after going through the news report published in the Economic Times.

As far as minority appeasement goes, this one takes the cake. The Kerala assembly on March 16 passed a unanimous resolution seeking the release of incarcerated PDP leader and a prime accused in the Coimbatore terror blasts, Abdul Nasser Madani, on “humanitarian” grounds.

Madani, a hard line Muslim leader from Kerala whose communally charged speeches helped his party PDP make a base in Travancore belt of the state, is not only charged with harbouring the blasts accused, including Ooma Babu alias Majid and others but also with liaisoning with Pakistan’s ISI for terror training of Al Umma activists. Al Umma is alleged to have masterminded the Coimbatore blasts. Serial explosions had shaken Coimbatore in February 1998 just ahead of the arrival of BJP president L. K. Advani there for an election rally, killing 59 persons and maiming 200 others.

Of course, Madani’s terror credentials seem to have been conveniently forgotten by both Congress and Left politicians in poll-bound Kerala as they jostle among themselves to champion the case for his release. The unanimous resolution, moved by minister for water resources Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan on March 15, urged the Union government to “intervene on humanitarian grounds in the case of Madani, languishing under trial in Coimbatore Central Jail for the last seven years.”

The resolution called upon the Centre to use its good offices to allow parole to Madani who, it said, is facing several health problems. “The assembly demands that urgent steps be taken to provide good medical treatment to him, “ it added.

The timing of the resolution seems to be have been carefully chosen, coming as it does just ahead of assembly poll in the state. The intention behind the heightened sympathy for Madani obviously goes beyond just “humanitarian concern” and appears to have been planned with an eye on the Muslim votes in the coming polls.

With PDP having a following in North Kerala, fighting for its leader Madani is seen as a sure shot way of winning over Muslims.

The narrow vote-bank considerations, however, overlook a major risk that the parties are taking by resorting to minority appeasement. The person whose parole they are seeking is alleged to be one of the most notorious rabble-rousers and Islamic extremist having links with the ISI. The investigations by the Tamil Nadu SIT looking into Coimbatore blasts reveal that Madani was the link between Islamic fundamentalist outfits in the southern states and the ISI. The police alleged that in the last decade, Madani, aided by the ISI, built a network of Islamic militants in south India. So much so, the intelligence agencies claim that they have conclusive proof that the PDP leader arranged for the training of several Al Umma activists in Pakistan.

Before he was jailed for being a part of the Coimbatore blasts, the Kerala police had registered a number of cases against him for issuing communal statements and making inflammatory speeches. They also recovered a large cache of pipe-bombs from different offices and hideouts of the extremist leader.

(Courtesy: The Economic Times)