A Strategy to Deter Terrorism continues....

This toughness was shown at a time when our government was tottering and about to fall! The difference with the V. P. Singh’s government was thus in Chandrashekhar government’s mindset: it had become clear from day one to the JKLF that we meant business as also that two can play the game.

We also showed similar grit and guts when we received information that LTTE had established a parallel establishment in Tamil Nadu, with the Chief Minister Karunanidhi’s connivance. Most of the senior bureaucrats of our government had warned the Prime Minister and me in the Cabinet sub-committee [the CCPA] meeting, that we risked bloodshed and rise of separatist Dravidian movement by taking precipitate action. But we, nevertheless, dismissed the DMK government, sacked the Governor for his inaction, and smashed the terror infrastructure in the state. The people responded by subsequently voting out the DMK in the ensuing polls. Out of 234 Assembly seats, the DMK won just two!! Had we not acted that then, Tamil Nadu would have been worse today than even Kashmir. Thus innate toughness on both occasion was rewarded because we targeted the political goals of the terrorists. The LTTE lost politically because the DMK infrastructure was unavailable thereafter for their India-based activities.

The worst capitulation to terrorists in our modern history was in the Indian Airlines hijack incident in December end 1999. The terrorists after hijacking an Indian Airlines flight from Kathmandu to Delhi demanded money and release of three of the most dreaded terrorists held in judicial custody in Jammu jail [Maulana Masood Azhar, Omar Sheikh, and Ahmed Zargar]. About 40 policepersons had earlier died in various encounters to capture them. Yet in the call of saving the lives of 259 passengers in the IA Airbus parked in Kandhahar, the government released these terrorists even without getting Court permission [required since they were in judicial custody]. They were “released” on 30 December 1999. But the Court having judicial custody was informed only on 3 January 2000 and the Court upheld the fait accompli on 29 January 2000 after passing structures.

To be continued.....