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National counter-terrorism policy soon, terror incidents down 70% in last 10 years: Shah
The home minister said the Modi government is committed to eradicating terrorism in the country and moving forward with a solid strategy against it.
6 min read
Union Home Minister Amit Shah and IB chief Tapan Kumar Deka in New Delhi, Thursday. (PTI)Stressing on the need to work together to fight terrorism, terrorists and their ecosystem, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Thursday that the Centre will soon bring a national counter-terrorism policy and strategy.
Addressing the Anti-Terror Conference-2024, organised by the NIA, which was attended by chiefs of state police forces and other top security officials of states and the Centre, Shah said that while law and order is a state subject and states have the geographical boundaries and constitutional limitations, terrorism doesn’t and hence all security agencies — central and states — must work in close coordination, chalk out joint strategies and share intelligence.
Shah asked the representatives of the state police forces, most of whom are DGP-rank officers, to invoke the UAPA wherever required. “The central government’s anti-terror probe agency NIA utilises UAPA in all terror cases, and as a result, so far out of 632 cases registered by it, chargesheets have been filed in 498 cases, conviction in almost 95%,” he said.
“We are taking the next step in the proactive approach that the Home Ministry has made to fight terrorism, terrorists and their ecosystem. And that’s why, we will soon bring a new national counter-terrorism policy and strategy in which you all will play a key role… But as I said, police is a state subject and the fight will have to be done by the state police only. All the (central) agencies will support you, from giving information for taking action,” he said.
He said the government has come up with a vision on model anti-terrorism squad (ATS) and model special task force (STF) for states and UTs, which, if adopted, will work as a common structure and platform to deal with the menace of terrorism.
He said that the new policy will help states and central agencies work closely to deal with terrorism. On the model ATS and STF, he said the standard operating procedures (SOPs) are being shared with the states and they can tweak them according to their respective requirements. “This (adopting model ATS and STF) doesn’t reduce the rights of states,” he said.
The home minister said the new policy will help states and central agencies to work in close coordination to deal with terrorism.
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On the model ATS and STF, he said the standard operating procedures (SOPs) are being shared with the states and they can tweak according to their respective requirements.
Shah said to make India developed by 2047 as envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, everyone has to deal with all security challenges and have a unified terror-fighting ecosystem.
“This (adopting model ATS and STF) doesn’t reduce the rights of states,” he said.
The home minister said the Modi government is committed to eradicating terrorism in the country and moving forward with a solid strategy against it.
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Security forces have to well equip young officers and use technology to combat terrorism, he said.
“After Narendra Modi became the prime minister in 2014, the country has been moving forward with a solid strategy against terrorism. We are committed to eradicating terrorism,” he said.
Now the whole world has accepted Prime Minister Modi’s zero tolerance policy against terrorism, the home minister said, adding that the government is committed to removing the evil of terrorism.
Highlighting the achievements of the Modi government against terrorism since 2014, during which terror incidents have come down by 70 per cent in comparison to the previous decade, Shah said now the shelf life of terrorists has decreased from two years to a few days.
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He said due to the joint efforts of state and central governments, violence has been controlled to a great extent in Jammu and Kashmir, Naxal-affected areas and the northeastern states in the last 10 years.
Shah asked representatives of the state police forces at the conference, most of whom are DGP-rank officers, to invoke the anti-terror law Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) wherever required.
The home minister said the central government’s anti-terror probe agency National Investigation Agency (NIA) utilises UAPA in all terror cases and as a result so far out of 632 cases registered by it, charge sheet has been filed in 498 cases, conviction in almost 95 per cent.
Shah said to make India developed by 2047 as envisioned by PM Narendra Modi, everyone has to deal with all security challenges and have a unified terror-fighting ecosystem. “The Modi government is committed to eradicating terrorism in the country and moving forward with a solid strategy against it. Security forces have to well equip young officers and use technology to combat terrorism,” he said.
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“… Now the whole world has accepted PM Modi’s zero tolerance policy against terrorism,” he said.
Highlighting the achievements of the Modi government against terrorism since 2014, during which terror incidents have come down by 70% compared to the previous decade, Shah said now the shelf life of terrorists has come down from two years to a few days. “Due to the joint efforts of state and central governments, violence has been controlled to a great extent in J&K, Naxal-affected areas and the northeastern states in the last 10 years,” he said.
Underlining the need to legally strengthen the hands of the institutions fighting terrorism, he said the NIA’s jurisdiction has been expanded by amending the NIA Act and now it can probe terror cases abroad too. By amending the UAPA, authorities now have the power to confiscate properties and declare organisations and individuals as terrorists, he said
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