Bangla's take on terror has India worried

NEW DELHI: Bangladesh’s steadfast refusal to shut anti-India militant camps on its soil has become a cause of serious concern for the Indian intelligence establishment. New Delhi has pointed out to Dhaka that recent terror attacks in India, including at Ayodhya in July last year, bomb blasts in Varanasi in March and the 7/11 Mumbai train bombings, had linkages with individuals and outfits in Bangladesh.

“Even during the home secretary-level talks held last month, we provided the Bangladeshi side a detailed list of the camps operating there and even the modus operandi of how Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) is recruiting Indians and training them,” said a highly placed home ministry official who did not wish to be named.

“Their response has so far been to deny the presence of the terrorist camps even as anti-India activities of ISI is increasing.”

The Intelligence Bureau is learnt to have furnished a list of recruits who have been trained in these camps along the India-Bangladesh border, and some drafted from the Middle East to carry out subversive acts.

Home Secretary V.K. Duggal, who led the delegation to Dhaka in August, pointed to the list of 172 terror camps and detailed how the insurgents were supported by Bangladeshi fundamentalist outfits sponsored by ISI, with money coming from the Gulf.

“Bangladesh has become the focal point of anti-India activities and ISI is in direct league with HUJI (Harkat-ul-Jihad-e-Islam) for all terrorist-related activities inside India. Training and recruitment are being done there,” the source said.

Although both sides have agreed to examine the possibility of instituting a bilateral mechanism soon to combat terrorism and organised crime, there is a strong possibility that skirmishes along the India-Bangladesh border could blow up into a major flare-up.

At a meeting with India’s Border Security Force (BSF) officials last month, Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) deputy director general Brigadier General S.M. Golam Rabbani was furnished with a list and asked to deport 113 Indian militants including United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) chairman Arabinda Rajkhowa, its general secretary Anup Chetia and others residing there.

Some of the top Indian militants seeking sanctuary in Bangladesh belong to the United National Liberation Front (UNLF), the Peoples’ Liberation Army (PLA), the National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT) and the Kanlei Yawol Kanna Lup (KYKL).

Interestingly, the BDR this time did not reject India’s demand outright but sought time to determine their whereabouts.
However, West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya had the last word when he came down heavily on Bangladesh at the chief ministers’ conference on internal security chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh early this month.

In his short speech, Bhattacharya blamed Dhaka for fanning terrorism in India and altering the demography along the border. Many described his speech as one of the most aggressive on a platform outside his state.

Pointing an accusing finger at the eastern border, Bhattacharya asked for a unified and multi-pronged approach to deal with terrorism. “It seems there has been a paradigm shift in strategy and the eastern border is now the platform chosen for launching terror strikes in the Indian hinterland,” he said.