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| Deepak Bajpai New Delhi | 16th Nov 2013 |
 |  Narendra Modi pays tribute to Rajnarain Singh, one of the victims of the recent serial bomb blasts, at Singh’s home in Patna. PTI n Intelligence Bureau note has alerted the Central government about specific threats to the life of BJP's Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi, from terrorist elements such as Dawood Ibrahim and Yaqoob Khan, aka Rasool "Party", one of the absconding accused in the murder of former Gujarat Home Minister Haren Pandya. The alert, a copy of which is available with TheSunday Guardian, notes the several ways by which these two, as well as terrorist outfits such as Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), Hizbul Mujahideen (Huji) and Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) are planning to eliminate Modi. The IB note talks about a recent meeting held between Dawood Ibrahim and officers of Pakistan's Inter Services Intelligence, in which the gangster-turned-terrorist was "tasked to restart activities in India and also target Shri Narendra Modi". This is the first time that Dawood, accused of orchestrating the 1993 Mumbai blasts, has been engaged to neutralise such a high-value target inside India. The IB note is based on data gleaned from various Central intelligence agencies that intercepted phone calls and messages between terror outfits such as JeM, LeT and SIMI among others. The note talks about how these terror outfits are coordinating among themselves to achieve their target. According to the note, Rasool "Party" is planning to carry out the assassination using a rocket launcher or by ramming an explosive-laden vehicle into Modi's convoy. The note reads, "Route ... should be given utmost importance aside from covering and sanitizing all such places from where a rocket launcher can be used for this attack on the route". The note then adds that "one Shahid alias Bilal" another absconder accused having links with fellow Hyderabadi Rasool "Party", "has informed an unidentified associate in Saudi Arabia that he was in favour of carrying out a suicide attack as against a remote-controlled IED (indigenous explosive device) attack on the Chief Minister of Gujarat". This is because such an attack "would act as a 'Major Motivator' for others". The IB note then mentions another intelligence input received from "Central Security Agencies" saying that "a Hizbul Mujahideen operative active in Muzaffarabad (in Pakistan occupied Kashmir) is to undertake subversive activities in India. During discussion (HuM leader) Shahryar expressed that he is also in favour of targeting anti-Muslim leaders such as Shri Narendra Modi." The IB note goes on to say that some "Islamic Fundamentalists based in Saudi Arabia" are planning to pull off a suicide mission by infiltrating the police. "According to an input, (an) LeT operator had obtained POLICE UNIFORMS and has recruited some Indian Security Officials to gain entry for the attack which may be in the shape of a suicide mission to assassinate Modi and kill as many bystanders as possible," says the note. The note also says that SIMI activists arrested by the Madhya Pradesh police have confessed to raising a women's suicide mission squad. These "Shaheen Force" is being raised primarily to target Narendra Modi. The note highlights that SIMI members are "networking with LeT, HUJI and JeM". Narendra Modi, apparently also "figures prominently" on the "hit list of CPI (Maoist)" cadre. Earlier this month, the BJP's demand for increased security to Narendra Modi saw a fresh slugfest between the main Opposition and the ruling Congress. The BJP sought heightened security cover for Modi in light of the serial bomb blasts at his rally in Patna last month. The party reportedly demanded for "foolproof security" to Modi and alleged that the Patna blasts were meant to "liquidate the party leadership". Former BJP chief, and party MP Venkaiah Naidu, said, "People do not trust the Central government will act in a responsible manner. It works only for the welfare of one family. Instead of acting on biases, the Centre must act in accordance with the threat perception." Communist Party of India (CPI) leader D. Raja said, "I definitely believe that the Home Ministry will take note of the threat alerts and view them with all seriousness". Congress spokesperson Meem Afzal's remark after the Patna blasts that "Now, he (Modi) wants to look like the Prime Minister without becoming one" drew the BJP's ire. The Centre had made it clear that there was little scope for an upgrade as the BJP's prime ministerial candidate already enjoyed the highest "Z-plus" protection by NSG commandos and was not eligible for SPG cover. Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde has publicly said that extending SPG cover to Modi would require an amendment to the SPG Act. SPG is mandated to provide security only to the Prime Minister, former Prime Ministers and their immediate kin. Minister of State for Home R.P.N. Singh has reportedly said that Modi's security detail was commensurate with his threat perception. |