CM seeks Modi help to curb terror

Guwahati: Facing the heat after the recent arrest of jihadi elements from the state, chief minister Tarun Gogoi on Wednesday sought Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s intervention in facilitating intelligence sharing with neighbouring countries to curb terrorism.
According to Gogoi, the handlers of the jihadi elements arrested in the state are based in other countries like Bangladesh. He also sought a similar interstate intelligence sharing arrangement with West Bengal.Gogoi met Modi in New Delhi and submitted a memorandum on various issues, including the rise of jihadi elements in the state.
“Of late, the state appears to have been targeted by fundamentalist organizations like al-Qaida. Some operatives with links with Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) were recently arrested in Assam. We feel the threat is real and such organizations may find support among misguided and disaffected elements in the state. It is, therefore, important that more sophisticated measures be taken to check, contain and curb such organizations and their activities through proper intelligence sharing and surveillance,” Gogoi’s memorandum said.
In the memorandum, Gogoi pointed out that militants take shelter in neighbouring states and in Bhutan and Myanmar. To tackle this, the Centre needs to take up issues of intelligence sharing and coordinated action with neighboring countries at the appropriate levels. “I feel there should be a similar interstate mechanism between Bengal and the northeast so that issues of jurisdiction do not come in the way of dealing with insurgency,” he said.
He requested the Centre to impress upon Nagaland the importance of a congenial environment along the interstate border. He said people displaced in the recent border clash are reluctant to return because of the fear of violence from militant organizations in Nagaland.