If we, as a sovereign, independent and a fast developing country have to say to terrorism and terror related mayhem that ‘enough was enough’ as for more than forty years, we have been reeling under the menace, it is high time to say so. Those elements from outside the country and from within, wearing different drapes like ‘human rights likely to be endangered’ or a particular law was likely to be misused or ‘a particular community or religious group to be victimised’ or ‘a bid to turn nation into police state’ etc should not be allowed to treat acts of terrorism as a pastime of some ‘naughty’, misled and poor unemployed ‘chaps’ and as such, very unfortunately, allowed terror and terror related violence to be part of the system. How long shall this country allow such uncalled for and motivated criticism to come in the way of having a very powerful anti terror mechanism, now needs cogent answers.
Those opposing more empowerment though backed by the highest institution of democracy – the Parliament, to the National Investigation Agency, must simply count the martyrdom of our security forces that takes place intermittently due to fighting terrorism. They should keep a count of innocent civilian killings, abductions, tortures, orphaned children and widowed young women besides colossal loss to national and private property. This simple analysis done honestly should now combine and unite all voices in favour of launching a final and decisive fight against this menace, exported by deceit, treachery and artifice by our belligerent neighbour which perhaps got separated from this country only for growing, sustaining, funding , indoctrinating and exporting terrorism.
Allaying the “fears” of the opposition of the likely ‘misuse’ of the National Investigation Agency (Amendment) Bill 2019, Home Minister Amit Shah assured and asserted that Modi Government would never abuse the law to victimise anyone. It is noteworthy that he, at the same time, made no bones about the resolve of the Government that terrorism had to be finished irrespective of the religion of the accused. It is an irony that even after seven decades of our getting independence and paying the price for the communal demand in the form of partition in 1947, still religion is brought in almost every sphere of politicking and even in how the country’s enemies had to be fought out. How could any soft peddling or friendly approach be even conceived in tackling cross border terrorism, the aim of which is to bleed India, is paradoxically astonishing .
Why was POTA repealed by the UPA? What were the compulsions excepting appeasement with misnomer that certain sections of the society would be happy and thus having eye on votes even at the cost of national security. And with repealing of POTA, did terrorism and the associated violence stop? It is an insult to a community and is tantamount to questioning the loyalty towards the nation if such assumptions were made. ‘No more of it’ should be the collective conscience of every Indian irrespective of which capacity one was working. However, the Lok Sabha having passed the said Bill with 278 votes in favour and six against, proved the combined will of the people and the imminent doom of foreign sponsored terrorism. The Bill gives vast powers to the NIA to probe terror attacks on Indians abroad through bi-lateral arrangements and agreements with different nations. Special courts too could be constituted only to handle the specific cases as put forth by the NIA. Needless to add, India cannot be taken as a country to be at receiving end or be called as a soft state. That could be the story of yester years only.
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