Congress hits out at Centre, says no clear policy to combat terror

Attacking the Centre for the alleged security lapses in Pathankot, the Opposition Congress said lack of coordination in anti-terrorism wings of the Centre is “scary”. The party said Pathankot terrorist attack and its aftermath have raised serious concerns on India’s internal security and its handling by the Centre.

The party said five different agencies of the Centre gave five different versions of the Pathankot attack and there is no cohesion in the Centre’s policy on security matters.

Congress spokesperson Ajay Maken on Monday told reporters here that the Centre demolished the institutional mechanism for responding to situations such as that happened in Pathankot.

“The institutional mechanism was the Cabinet Committee on Security. Gradually, this institutional mechanism is being degraded or demolished. That is the reason why different organs of the Centre are looking as if they are functioning in isolation and not functioning in tandem with each other, which is very scary,” Maken said.

He said somebody was advising the Prime Minister, the Home Minister and the Defence Minister wrongly. “Once the CCS is activated and strengthened, such things would never happen. The Home Minister will not know even that the operation was completed or not, with one agency not knowing what the other agency is doing. Unfortunately, such things happen only when such institutions are demolished, and this is what is happening in the present government,” he said.

The Congress added that talks and terror could not go side by side. “The Centre has to come out openly about the facts, which have led to this terror attack in Pathankot. Why is the Centre scared of not naming Pakistan, when it is now clearly established that four phone calls were made by terrorists back to Pakistan? Why is the Centre trying to hold up information from the people?” asked Maken.

Maken reminded Modi that he had criticised the UPA government when the 26/11 Mumbai attacks happened.

“Why can’t the same Prime Minister now take control of the situation in Pathankot, instead of shying away from defining Pakistani terrorists? Why is the Prime Minister giving a new description of terrorists as ‘enemies of humanity’ instead of describing them as ‘Pakistani terrorists’?” Maken asked.