Need anti-terror law: Advani

Wed, May 14 03:10 AM

Senior BJP leader L K Advani said that terror attacks like the one in Jaipur reinforce the need for an anti-terror law in the land. "It's not about an anti-terror law alone. It reflects the attitude of the Government and the people," he told The Indian Express, in an apparent reference to the UPA Government's unwillingness to bring in an anti-terror legislation after the repeal of POTA.

The argument that the Parliament attack was carried out during the NDA regime (which had enacted POTA) glosses over the institutionalised system of punishing the guilty in such cases, said the BJP's prime ministerial candidate.

Advani spoke to Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje Scindia immediately after the news of the blasts broke. Vasundhara, who was away in Jodhpur and immediately set off for Jaipur, kept the party leader posted.

"Serial bomb blasts at crowded places, and targeting unsuspecting citizens, have become a pattern of the terrorists' war on India. Today's incident has yet again underscored that this threat to our internal security cannot be belittled," said Advani in a statement later.

Asked about the BJP government's failure to pre-empt terror strikes, he said it was not a question of "one state government here or one there", but "it was about the complete ability of the state to pre-empt such strikes".

Immediately after the blasts, party president Rajnath Singh drove to Advani's residence to discuss the situation in the BJP-ruled state. Rajnath, who also spoke to Vasundhara, said it was alarming that terror had found its way to the hinterland but the UPA Government remained unmoved (to enact an anti-terror law).

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