LeT bids to make Maldives its base

NEW DELHI: The UPA government on Tuesday said Pakistan-based terror outfit Lashkar-e-Toiba is making concerted efforts to carry out attacks in the country and to develop links in Maldives and neighbouring countries. “Available inputs indicate that Pakistan-based terrorist groups, primarily the LeT, are making concerted efforts to organise terrorist attacks in various parts of the country, inter-alia, including iconic institutions, prominent industrial installations and tourist locations among others,” minister of state for home affairs Ajay Maken told Lok Sabha in a written reply.

There has been evidence of the success of Lashkar and other jihadi groups in expanding their influence in predominantly Muslim Maldives. Intelligence agencies here have noted with concern the sharp increase in the number of visitors from Maldives to Pakistan, where they spend a lot of time travelling around the country for purposes which are unclear but suspicious to agencies here.

Maldives has been a target for Lashkar and other jihadi groups which have been trying to make it a hub due to its geographical uniqueness — isolated and sparsely populated islands in the Indian neighbourhood. According to official estimates here, about 700,000 tourists visit Maldives every year and so the island nation does not want to take any chance on security issues.

What is worrying the government here is the effort of Pakistan-based terror groups to recruit jihadis from Maldives. Sabahuddin, one of the two Indian nationals arrested in connection with the 26/11 attack on Mumbai, told his interrogators that they had got Ali Ahsham to do the recce on targets in Bangalore in the run-up to the attack on the Indian Institute of Science.

In his reply, the minister of state for home affairs said: “The government continues to be alert to these threats and re-calibrates its measures to combat terrorism by way of reviewing threat perception and a number of important decisions and measures have been taken.” He also said that India has been working closely with Maldives to strengthen bilateral security co-operation. “Our security concerns are conveyed through bilateral channels or mechanisms, with the concerned authorities,” he said.