Providing foolproof security to the VVIPs like the Heads of a State, cabinet ministers, top echelons of judiciary, administration and security organizations, etc., has been a recognized practice since antiquity. Chingiz Khan and Timur’s bodyguards were almost replicas of today’s suicide bombers. However, despite the foolproof security bandobast, many outstanding personalities were slain by their assassins. The reason for eliminating a distinguished personality or a top government functionary could be political, factional or personal. But there are other reasons also like religious fanaticism, ideological obsession and pure jealousy.
ISIS is the most powerful and dreadful terrorist organization in contemporary times responsible for the killing of important personalities. Many regional and local terrorist organizations are its close affiliates. It is a ruthless group of Islamic Theo-fascists intending to establish the Islamic Caliphate all over the West Asian countries, the Indian sub-continent eastwards right up to the Strait of Malacca or what they often call the region between the Dardanelles and the Strait of Malacca in the Indian Ocean.
India, with nearly 20 crores of Muslims, the next largest Muslim inhabited country after Indonesia, is now on the radar of ISIS. It’s anti-India programme, known as Ghazvatu’l Hind (Indian campaign for Islamization) is strongly assisted by many radical Islamic organizations spread over the entire region. A Theo-fascist Entente has thus come into being. On the level of political philosophy, they are the sworn enemies of both democracy and secularism.
Raising suicide bombers called Fidayeen in their terminology, to eliminate the strong advocates of democracy and secularism in an Asiatic country where idol-worshippers (kafir and zindiq in their terminology) are to be found in numerical strength is their ordained mission. It has to be undertaken through muscle as well as brain power.
Our political ideologues including PM Narendra Modi are not off their radar. Ever since Modi became the Prime Minister in 2014 at least two aborted attempts were made to eliminate him. The latest was only recently in Punjab when he was left stranded for 24 minutes on a bridge by crowds with nefarious designs.
A great responsibility devolves on the security paraphernalia of the Home Ministry to ensure foolproof security for the Prime Minister. Our super cops of the intelligence organization must remember that no laxity is acceptable. The stubbornness of Indira Gandhi proved fatal.
Shocking news has come from Russia disclosing the arrest of a suicide bomber (fidayeen) in Moscow planning a suicide attack on the top leadership of India. Fuller details of the case are awaited. But whatever little has been made public, is too alarming and India has to take serious notice of the event.
A national of one of the Central Asian Republics (Uzbekistan or Turkmenistan) was recruited by ISIS and brought to Istanbul in Turkey to an ISIS camp. He was indoctrinated for several months and then assigned the task of blowing up some top Indian ruling personalities through suicide trappings. He was directed to go to Moscow and obtain his travel visa to India. But the alert Russian security personnel grabbed him and he let the story out when interrogated. The selection of Moscow route is significant.
Now, this incident has so many dimensions and many questions need to be answered. There is a reference to the so-called use of derogatory language against the Prophet of Islam by some Indian to which the Muslim world rose in protest. It means that the Islamic Theo-fascists have the programme of destabilizing India and in this process, they have registered the support of radicals in and outside India.
Secondly, Turkey has become the hub of training and brainwashing of the fidayeen and seems to have determined to export the products of these training camps to countries which it thinks are oppressing the Muslim population. President Erdogan is openly against India and has spoken against India in the UN and other assemblies. Very few people know that for quite some time Turkey has established direct contact with the militants and anti-India elements in Kashmir. It has opened the doors of its universities and colleges to the aspirant Kashmiri Muslim students who are simultaneously brainwashed and indoctrinated in the teachings of ISIS. Turkey is reported to be providing anti-India printed literature to the vulnerable segments in the valley. The students are promised scholarships and hospitality. The daughter of the late Ali Shah Geelani is reported to have established a digital centre in Turkey and is operating a website catering to the separatists in Kashmir. Bollywood celebrity Amir Khan was the special guest of Madam Erdogan of Turkey and he was given special hospitality in Ankara.
Turkey has established close relations with Pakistan for quite some time. They have secret military cooperation as well and Turkey with very effective drone technology has supplied dozens of Turkish Bayraktar drones to Pakistan which are deployed along LoC and IB in J&K to drop arms, ammunition and cash on the Indian side of the border. That case is under investigation at the police headquarters in Kashmir.
Turkey is strengthening the Pakistan navy by building various types of vessels for her. Recently the Turkey-built warship of Pakistan was seen somewhere in the waters of Sri Lanka. Turkey is also building submarines for Pakistan at its shipyard building centres.
It will be recalled that Turkey is ambitious to revive the lost glory of the Ottoman Empire. That is President Erdogan’s dream. For achieving that objective, he thinks he must wrest the leadership of the Islamic world from the hands of the Saudi monarch. Nearly three years ago Erdogan formed an alliance of four Islamic countries, Turkey, Iran, Pakistan and Malaysia whose heads were to meet in Kuala Lampur and declare that the Saudi monarch was not the permanent Guardian of the Twin Shrines of Mecca and Medina (Haramain Sharief) nor was he the leader of the Islamic world. In short, the four countries, all non-Semitic, wanted the leadership to be shifted to Ankara enabling Erdogan to boost his claim for the revival of the Ottoman Empire. But a strong action by Prince Salman of Saudi Arabia tore the Entente to shreds. Pakistan had to pay back the loan of one billion dollars to the Saudis.
In the context of the arrest of the ISIS-trained suicide bomber by the security forces in Moscow, an important question needs to be answered. The suicide terrorist was trained in a training centre of ISIS in Turkey. Such a centre as is banned by the UN cannot function in Turkey without the consent and knowledge of the Turkish government. The existence of this training centre indicates that Turkey has no intention of playing her role in the anti-terrorism policy. It is a country that promotes terrorism.
Moreover, Turkey is a member of NATO and this organization has declared publicly that it will do all possible to counter terrorism. Therefore, it is the responsibility of NATO authorities to question Turkey (a member of NATO) on her relations with the banned ISIS.
India should also bring the episode to the notice of the UN Security Council and she must state that one cannot say how many before the one arrested in Moscow will have succeeded in entering India. On this basis, India should demand that Turkey is censured by the SC and warned that if there is any further evidence of her involvement in terrorism, she would be expelled from NATO and all other organs of the UN. India should not take it lying low.
At home, India has to upgrade its security bandobast and increase round-the-clock vigil so that miscreants are apprehended before they succeed in striking vulnerable spots.