Uttar Pradesh: Another J&K in the making

With a little help from friendly Maoists

A sizable Muslim population in UP which is useful to politicians of all hues, as a mere vote bank, is undoubtedly the best bet for Lashkar-e—Taiba and its master ISI of Pakistan to be used in their one point agenda of complete destruction of India. Intelligence reports suggest UP could be the next Jammu & Kashmir. A very disturbing development that was feared all this while.

Uttar Pradesh could well be on the way to becoming the next Jammu and Kashmir. The serial blasts in Varanasi show that the situation in the state is “very disturbing” and that the attacks were part of militants’ design to “export terrorism” outside the Valley.

According to intelligence inputs from both the Centre and state units, the situation is alarming. In view of rising ISI activity in the region and its hobnobbing with Maoist insurgents in Nepal, the Centre is of the view that UP is definitely in for some more trouble. Intelligence agencies have information of the “ISI using Maoists as a tool in its nefarious design against India”. The ISI, in league with renegade fundamentalists, has already established base in Bangladesh. “UP tops the ISI agenda,” said a senior intelligence officer. He said that the Union home ministry had been regularly providing the state with information in this connection.
According to sources, the present dispensation in Nepal is also soft-peddling these terror agents, who have been moving frequently between Kathmandu and Bangladesh via Assam. The Indo-Bangla border in West Bengal has become a safe route for these Islamist militants to reach UP.
Senior police officers involved in the Varanasi blasts probe didn’t rule out the possibility of similar “incidences to derail economy and cause communal clashes”.
The problem in the state initially started with the western region, where more than a dozen ISI modules have been busted so far. It has now been taking root in the eastern region. With rampant poverty, “there is no dearth” of manpower for terror acts in UP, said an intelligence officer, adding: “Funds are in abundance with terror groups.” [HT]