T K Singh
Unlike it happened in other significant terror attacks in India, neither the strategic communities nor the stakeholders discuss on the lapse of intelligence or lack of security on the alleged first ever terror strike on May 1, 2014 in Chennai, a city known for biggest commercial and industrial capital in South India. In a political milieu or to gain political achievements, it was the leaders of Opposition party, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) who claimed that there was a threat alert in Chennai, but was not taken seriously by the ruling Government, All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK). While terror issues has been politicised by rival parties, serious concerns are yet to be taken on the fresh entry of this industrial city in the terror list, besides economic hub of Mumbai and political centre of Delhi that are already a victim of terrorism. Though the attack was considered to be a low intensity blast, it also could be a dry run of terrorist for future mega strikes in Chennai.
Chennai being a booming industrial city in South India attracts professionals including techies, serviceman, businessman and skilled labours from various parts of Indian and neighbouring country such as Sri Lanka. Meanwhile, agents of Pakistan Inter Services Intelligence (ISI), criminals, terrorist and sleeper cells are active in and around the city. While arrest of such operatives has been observed from time to time, no terror attack of its kind specifically in Chennai has ever been witnessed. The incident took place when two bombs were exploded at 7.15 am in S4 and S5 at the Bangalore-Guwahati Express, killing one and injuring 14, while stopping at the “Chennai Central”. The train got delayed for 90 minutes, otherwise it could have been exploded in Andhra Pradesh where the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Prime Minister candidate Narendra Mohi had to campaign on the same day.
While the lapses of security parameters in this incident are hardly discuss anywhere, two days later M K Stalin and his father, DMK Chief M Karunanidhi attacked Jayalalithaa, the Chief Minister (CM) of Tamil Nadu for failing to take preventive actions even the state police has received inputs on possible attacks at main cities like Chennai, Tiruchirpalli and Madurai from Intelligence Bureau in the previous month. Claiming that the Chief Minister should take full responsibilities for the blast, Stalin further stated that instead of visiting the death and injured victims, the CM was taking rest in Kodanad. Criticizing the statement of the DMK leaders, Jayalalithaa similarly lambasted Karunanidhi for inability to protect the serial terror strike in Coimbatore that killed 60 people in 1998 when the later was governing the State.
Though such terror incident was recorded possibly for the first time in Chennai, terror related activities have been observed in the state off and on. Subsequently, home grown terror outfit like Indian Mujahideen (IM) has a strong presence in Tamil Nadu. Lately, few hours after the bomb blast took place, one IM associate Ashraf Ali, a resident of Uttar Pradesh was arrested from Chidambaram Township, Cuddalore by the Rajasthan Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS). Ali who ran a footwear shop in Jodhpur, Rajasthan and worked as an editor of an unfamiliar Urdu magazine was involved in recruiting youths for IM in Jodhpur. He has been hiding in Tamil Nadu and became underground since March 23, 2014 after the arrest of IM leader Waqas by a joint team of the Rajasthan ATS and Delhi Police. Earlier, top IM commander Muhammad Ahmad Zarar Siddibapa along with his associates was also arrested from Chennai in 2011.
Besides the presence of IM, local Jihadi group, Al-Umma which has been considered now to be a defunct outfit, and popularly known for its criticism against BJP is also active in the region from time to time. As the May Day attack was allegedly designed to target the BJP campaign in Andhra Pradesh, needle of suspicion is also pointed towards the group. After the 1998 Coimbatore blast, the group seem to keep silent however in the last three years, its members have been involved in attacking BJP and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) leaders. The group was involved in planting pipe bomb under a culvert on the way of BJP leader L K Advani in Madurai in 2011. Later, Al-Umma associates, Fakruddin, Bilal Malik and Panna Ismail were arrested from Chennai and Andhra Pradesh in October 2013 in connection with the terror plot.
Apart from the terror outfits, spying agents functioning under the aegis of ISI are also significantly active in the State. Only two day before the train blast, on 29 April 2014, one Sakir Mohammed Hussain form Kandy, Sri Lanka, alleged to be an ISI agent was arrested in Chennai with sensitive pictures and Fake Indian Currency Note (FICN) possibly linked to terrorism. He was arrested based on a specific input that some Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) elements from Northern Sri Lanka are likely to land on the Tamil Nadu coast to target vital installations in South India. Hussain was also involved in recruiting youths from South India and frequently flies between Chennai and Sri Lanka. Later it was confirmed from his interrogation that he was in reconnaissance for attacking US and Israeli consulates in Chennai and Bangalore respectively. He was handling by one Amir Zubair Siddiqui, Counsellor (Visa office) of the Pakistan High Commission in Colombo, and his name has been under Indian intelligence radar when one Thameem Ansari (another ISI agent) was arrested with video-graphs of defence establishments on 18 September 2012 in Trichi on his way to travel Sri Lanka.
While the State Government has already received assistance from the National Security Guard (NSG) in identifying the explosive materials, interestingly the CM has denied getting support from the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in examining the case. But such unfortunate indifferences between the State and centre only add to provide advantages to the perpetrators. In fact, Jayalalithaa had denied when NIA was established after 26/11 Mumbai terrorist attack, saying that such agency would only suppress the power of the State as it was created based on “of the Centre, by the Centre, for the Centre”.
Understanding the vulnerable security issues in the State and considering the booming infrastructure in the region, security of South India may not be taken into granted and more attention should be drawn. Though it was a law intensity bomb blast, the possibility of the May Day attack as a rehearsal for future mega strikes in the region cannot be ruled out. At the same time, there still remains a doubt that whenever there is a bomb blast in mega cities like Delhi or Mumbai, the whole country wakes up and discuss on intelligence and security lapses, but seemingly not is the case in Chennai blast which otherwise is an important city equally like the other two.
(The author T K Singh is an Assistant Professor at the Department of National Security Studies in the Central University of Jammu, India.)
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