Terror outfits getting desperate over Modi government

Banned Islamic terror outfits are planning to intensify their activities in India under the garb of fighting Narendra Modi who is widely blamed for polarising the polity, with the BJP's massive victory in the elections - a stinging blow to their ideological position vis-à-vis that of the Sangh parivar.

Anticipating the difficult times ahead with Narendra Modi's zero tolerance of terrorism, a desperate Student Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) activists issued an open threat to Modi at a Bhopal court a couple of days ago. Operatives of the banned SIMI chanted slogans saying, ''Ab ki baar Modi ka number'', and ''Taliban Zindabad'', on the district court premises when they were produced for a hearing there on 16 May.

The threat to the PM designate came on a day when the results of the Lok Sabha elections were declared and it was cleared that BJP-led NDA would form government at the centre.

According to Bhopal police and eye-witnesses, 18 jailed SIMI operatives, including its Madhya Pradesh head and terror accused Abu Faisal, raised pro-Taliban and anti-Modi slogans after a hearing on terror-related cases and the Khandwa jailbreak.

Meanwhile, Director General of Police, Madhya Pradesh, Nandan Dube said it was more an act of publicity to draw national attention and perhaps support from sympathisers. "Madhya Pradesh has a history of SIMI activity, which is a banned organisation. The moment the group saw media in the court premises, it started shouting slogans to draw national attention. They have been booked for raising inflammatory slogans and we're looking into the issue from the evidences gathered."

Madhya Pradesh home minister Babulal Gaur was quoted as saying, "It reflects the panic among the accused, who have been allegedly involved in anti-national activities, especially with Modiji ascending to power at the Centre, who has made clear his zero-tolerance policy towards terrorism.''

He said the next hearing will be done within the jail premises through video-conferencing to avoid such untoward scenes.

Chhattisgarh, which is otherwise a communally peaceful state, already has a base of SIMI operations, with sleeper cells operating without attracting public glare.

According to the Chhattisgarh police, a key SIMI member, Umer Siddiqui, who was arrested used to run a coaching centre in Raipur city.

These sleeper cells of SIMI-IM combine, supported by Pakistan, have silently been operating since long across the country. Experts see the Bhopal incident as a kind of warning, as the SIMI operatives make their presence felt. They see it as an ideological battle between the BJP and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) on one hand and the radical Islamic outfits like SIMI on the other.