Sudhir Hindwan

The concept that one man’s terrorist can be another man’s freedom fighter must be done away with; locals should cooperate with law enforcers

The recent twin drone attacks on the Indian Air Force station in Jammu and the eruption of skirmishes created by insurgents once again expose the trend of ongoing low intensity militancy from across the border and reaffirms the conspiracy to hit India by trying to draw it into a socio-religious and security quagmire.

The easy availability of low-cost weaponscarried by drones and misuse of social media sites and communication networks calls for an immediate upgrading of our strategy. The role of Lashkar-e-Taiba is sinister. It has used drones quite frequently in the past to carry out its missions. Analysts say the latest attacks are attention-seeking, to send out a message that the terrorists can carry out their terror tactics despite the Covid-19 pandemic.

Hamas uses such low-rise drone attacks against Israel and so does the Islamic State in Iraq. Apart from being effective, the attacks also hold an element of surprise. In the Jammu case, it also points to a high level of coordination by the terrorists. Such attacks can instill fear among the people and disorganise the security apparatus.

This is a game that cannot be carried out by individuals without organized outside support. The existence of such support groups in terror training camps in PoK and their role in fighting a proxy war against India by inciting communal passions is well known.

The question now is whether the latest attack is the handiwork of a special force trained for counter-terrorist activities. West German, France, and Italy have confronted and combated such groups.

India has a highly developed intelligence network thatcan anticipate such threats. They need to calibrate their strategies to the new threat and the possibility of a new group in action. It also requires the people’s participation in terms of alertness and aiding the police and the general security environment. There is also a need for sophisticated security procedures including airport screening, border security,and coast-line monitoring.

India has to update its counter-terror strategies as well. Legislation like Tada and Pota was implemented but not extended because of internal opposition for their anti-democratic nature. However, states like Maharashtra and Gujarat have enacted stringent laws. The NIA is a formidable addition to the counter-terror armour.

In addition to strict anti-terrorist laws, India also needs some kind of parallel strategies to complement the actions of the security agencies.These are to do with international diplomacy.  India has been trying its best to promote open dialogues and encourage amicable conflict resolution processes. Recently, the Government has made all-round efforts to sensitise people who are victims of ideological and political brainwashing.

Many efforts have been made by many nations to discourage state-sponsored terrorism but so far they have not met with much success. During the last two decades, the nexus between drug smugglers and terrorists have posed a serious problem to domestic security.

However, mere implementation of vigorous drug laws cannot become effective unless the judicial procedure is modified for ensuring speedy trials.The concept that one man’s terrorist can be another man’s freedom fighter must be done away with; local populace should cooperate with law enforcement machinery even at the cost of personal misery; prompt and strict decisions should be undertaken by various nations for controlling terrorists psychologically.

In a fast-changing environment, the security apparatus and police need to diversify their activities by bringing together technical and professional expertise based on many decades of experience in maintaining internal security. In this regard, the most crucial thing is to develop a capability to anticipate security needs. This is possible by conducting specialized courses for monitoring security situations.

One word of caution: The sudden influx of social media narratives needs to be kept at an arm’s distance. Debates on tv news channels have sprung several experts on pluralism, secularism, and even nationalism apart from political jingoism. It is time to realise that concepts such as nationalism and patriotism are lofty and cannot be treated as mundane subjects. So is national security a serious issue that cannot be trifled with on public fora.

One rarely comes across a balanced and dispassionate assessment of national security. The latest challenges of transnational terrorism can be deceptive, changing tactics at will. They require a resilient security system that can withstand pressures while neutralizing the sponsors of terror.

(The writer is a Chandigarh-based academic and an expert on strategic affairs. The views expressed are personal.)