26/11 is a wound that will never heal: Devendra Fadnavis

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday said the 26/11 terror attack was "a wound that will never heal," and his government was committed to ensure that such an incident never takes place again. There were intelligence inputs but the then government could not act on it to prevent the attack, said the BJP leader who is also the state's home minister.

Fadnavis was speaking at an event organised by Panchajanya, a magazine published by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, on the eve of the 14th anniversary of the terror attack. There was an intelligence input but the government of the day could not act on it and there was no coordination, he claimed. ''After the attack, the need for surveillance through CCTV network was stressed. From 2009 onwards, tenders were issued and cancelled but the project never took off. Only when I took over as chief minister in 2014, the project got a momentum and its first phase was completed in one year," Fadnavis said.

The state government will also install face recognition cameras which use artificial intelligence to enhance security, he said. Security on the seas has also been strengthened, the deputy CM said. "In a terror attack, soft diplomacy does not work. (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi said if you attack us, we will enter your home and hit you back,'' he said.


Because of the Modi government's efforts, the deposition of terror convict David Headley, lodged in a US prison, was recorded in the 26/11 attack case, and it brought to light how Pakistan and its intelligence agency ISI were involved in the attack, Fadnavis said. He also said that the attack was a message to other countries not to do business with India.