Rejecting Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi's contention -- that the National Counter Terrorism Centre is a poorly conceived idea -- the Centre on Wednesday said the country will have to pay a heavy price if the anti-terror hub does not come into existence. Finance Minister P Chidambaram, the architect of the NCTC, said it was "deeply regrettable" that a few chief ministers opposed even the modified version of the NCTC.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithiviraj Chavan on Monday sought powers of requisitioning aircraft in case of emergency situations for its anti-terror "Force One" created in the aftermath of 26/11 attacks.
Seeking support for the proposed National Counter Terrorism Centre, External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid on Thursday said all political parties and state governments should come together for a collective response to fight against the challenge of terrorism.
In a move apparently aimed at mollifying states, the Union home ministry has proposed to take out the National Counter Terrorism Centre from the ambit of the Intelligence Bureau, a sticky point over which the anti-terror body has been stuck.
The controversial National Counter Terrorism Centre, a pet project of former Home Minister P Chidambaram, may take some more time to actualise with his successor Sushilkumar Shinde directing ministry officials to wait till Parliament approves the proposed amendment to the anti-terror law Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
Faced with frequent incidents of abduction, the Centre on Monday said if the controversial National Counter Terrorism Centre comes into existence, it would help in the long run to deal with hostage situations in a better way.
Noting that heavy deployment of security forces in neighbouring Chhattisgarh was driving Maoists to his state, Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday demanded two additional Central Reserve Police Force battalions and a military chopper to "effectively" tackle the extremists.
Opposing the setting up of anti-terror body National Counter Terrorism Centre in its present form, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh on Wednesday said it violates the federal structure of the Constitution. The chief minister of the Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled state said that the NCTC should be ratified by Parliament to make it responsible and answerable to people.
Accusing the Centre of double speak, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said though the United Progressive Alliance government claimed that security was a "shared" responsibility of the Centre and states, it did not bother to consult states when it came to forming laws.
Her statement came after a controversy broke out that TMC MP Yusuf Pathan was forced to opt out of the multi-party diplomatic delegation.
Asking the government to keep the implementation of National Counter-Terrorism Centre in abeyance, the Bharatiya Janata Party demanded that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh immediately convene a meeting of chief ministers to discuss the contentious issue threadbare.
In a strongly worded letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa has opposed the establishment of the National Counter Terrorism Centre, expressing concern that provisions of the anti-terror organisation "smack of a tendency to abrogate power with no attendant responsibility".
John Spencer, the chair of Urban Warfare Studies at US-based think-tank Modern War Institute, said India showcased its ability to strike any target in Pakistan "at will" and drew and enforced a "new red line" for cross-border terrorism under the operation that was launched early on May 7.
Julio Ribeiro, the Mumbai police chief who sprang to superstardom after leading the Punjab Police during the Khalistan insurgency, has experience with both state-level and counterterrorism policing. And he is doubtful whether the National Counter-Terrorism Centre is really needed.
Voicing reservations over the full-fledged operationalisation of the ambitious National Counter Terror Centre, Congress-ruled Karnataka on Wednesday said the body should not be given "unbridled powers".
India's Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said on Thursday that the choice of de-escalation is with Pakistan, as India only responded to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, which killed 26 people. He added that Pakistan has been escalating the situation with cross-border terrorism against India for decades.
Is she, like the AIADMK's Jayalalithaa with the Vajpayee government in 1998, playing bully to a government that she knows cannot survive without her Parliamentary support? Or is there a greater scheme behind her erratic actions? Discussing the mercurial Mamata Banerjee on the Rediff Chat is Senior Editor Indrani Roy, a long-time watcher of Bengal and Mamata politics.
After the launch of National Counter Terror Centre was put on hold due to protests by non-Congress ruled states, chief ministers of Tamil Nadu and Orissa on Tuesday trained their guns again at the Centre by opposing the proposed amendment to the Railway Protection Force Act.
Union Home Minister P Chidambaram during his four-day visit to United States to boost \n\nsecurity co-operation, met with Senator Dianne Feinstein, Chairwoman of the US Senate's \nSelect Committee on Intelligence, in Washington on Wednesday.
As many as seven chief ministers have joined a chorus of disapproval against the National Counter-Terrorism Centre, which the Union government notified earlier this month. The United Progressive Alliance has argued that the action flows from powers already in the existing unlawful activities statute.
Pakistan-based Al Qaeda's senior leadership remained committed to acquiring weapons of mass destruction including nuclear weapons, a top Obama administration official said.
Security experts are blaming Home Minister P Chidambaram for his handling of the important NCTC legislation. They now believe that the legislation, which has come under scathing attack from various states, would eventually lack any sting. Vicky Nanjappa reports
With states stoutly opposed to the National Counter Terrorism Centre in its current form, Home Minister P Chidambaram has assured that the matter of re-location of the anti-terror body outside the Intelligence Bureau would be re-examined. In his concluding remarks at the chief ministers' conference, which were released officially on Sunday, the home minister sought to clarify the decision of placing the NCTC within the IB.
Shah said there is a need to not only combat terrorism but also dismantle its entire ecosystem, and for this "we must work with the spirit of the whole of government and Team India".
After the controversy surrounding the National Counter Terrorism Centre, Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa have trained their guns on the central government again by opposing a proposed amendment to the Railway Protection Force. They have joined Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi in asking Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to instruct the railway ministry not to proceed with the move.
While this being the debate, rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa spoke to three people who have widespread experience in dealing with security, legal and state issues.
Four policemen were injured in an attack by Naxals, who first triggered a landmine blast and then opened fire at them in Sukma district in Bastar region of Chhattisgarh during their 'Bharat Bandh' on Wednesday, police said.
The National Security Strategy document should flag all major issues concerning security strategy and provide guidelines to concerned departments to work out suitable action plans. Since the global and regional geopolitical canvas is dynamic, the NSS document should be deliberated at length before formulation and should be reviewed periodically, recommends Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).
The provisions of the proposed amendments to the BSF Act 'smack of a desire to smuggle in a mechanism inspired by the same goals as those behind the setting up of an operations division in the NCTC, through the back door', Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa wrote to the PM
The revised plan for controversial National Counter-Terrorism Centre has been recalled from the Cabinet Secretariat after Sushilkumar Shinde took charge as home minister for a thorough review by him.
Nitish Kumar, who was clicked shaking hands with Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi at the National Counter Terrorism Centre conference, on Sunday came under attack from Rashtraiya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad, who said the Bihar chief minister stands "thoroughly exposed" over his "secular facade".
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa assumed the centre stage in the national scene on Monday by attacking Centre's policies on internal security during the chief minister's conference in New Delhi.
The Samajwadi Party on Monday said it will vote against the government in Parliament on the issue of setting up the National Counter Terrorism Centre.
Lashkar-e-Tayiba operative arrested in Delhi has revealed that he was reporting to LeT commander Abu Hamza, who shuttles between Pakistan and Kashmir. Vicky Nanjappa reports.
'The Pakistani State has to realise that the pigeons have come home to roost.'
Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday raised concerns over the new draft on National Counter Terrorism Centre terming it a "poorly conceived" idea, which "tinkers" with old ideas rather than strengthening them.
Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday asked Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to limit the agenda of chief ministers conference, scheduled on April 16, to discuss the formation of National Counter Terror Centre only and not deal with the issue in a "perfunctory" manner.
The NCTC imbroglio is symptomatic of a whole host of issues that will come up in the future, which impinge on the federal structure of our polity, writes Bharat Bhushan
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said difficult decisions were getting "more difficult" because of coalition compulsions. Replying to debate on the Motion of Thanks to the President's Address, he spoke about the opposition to the NCTC and responded to the demands by Tamil parties for supporting UN resolution against Sri Lanka. Here's the full text of his address.
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