The recent events on terror front have heightened the threat perception for India. What is needed is a political will to counter it effectively.Though it needs no reiteration that the country has been the target of some of the most dreaded terrorist attacks, yet the arrests of about 13 leaders of the banned outfit SIMI reveals a new face of terror where young and educated recruits are brainwashed to believe that India can be converted into an Islamic country through terror. That the threat has become more serious is relevant in the light of the fact that the arrest of these activists uncovers a terror trail stretching from MP to Mumbai, Karnataka, Delhi and other important cities across India. Indeed, the fast spreading terror tentacles of SIMI give a clear picture of the entrenchment of radical Islamists in our country.

Obviously, the arrested SIMI leaders including the National Secretary General Safdar Nagori have been operating with impunity in the last many years across the country. They have been effectively spreading their tentacles throughout India since 2003 either by single-handedly carrying out terror strikes or by giving logistic support to Pak-based terror groups like Lashker, Jaish and Harkat-ul-Jihadi Islami. Interrogations have unmasked the fact that SIMI members were hand in glove with LeT while planning and executing serial bomb blasts in Mumbai in which more than 180 people were killed. There are also strong reasons to believe that they have been masterminding almost all major terrorist strikes in the country for the last four years. Indeed, Indian concerns have found resonance in the revelation that the SIMI leaders were plotting to carry out major terror strikes in Mumbai, Banglore, Hyderabad and also the ultimate tourist destination, Goa.

The outfit's top leaders were arrested in a pre-dawn bust as part of a special police tip off for being involved in weapons' procurement and illegal financing of the organization. While all of them were remanded to police custody, more swoops are in the offing in the coming days.

Meanwhile, Home ministry sources have asserted that the terrorist group chose Mumbai because of its commercial viability for India. Likewise, other three cities were targeted due to their tourism potential. Close on the heels of the reports that Karnataka's Jungles were being used by Pak-based terrorists for training their cadres, a similar training camp was found 35 kilometers from Indore where Jihadi and explosive training was conducted. "We were told the camp trained the SIMI activists from Jharkhand, Kerala, Karnataka and a few other states," SP Chanchal Sarkar is reported to have said. In fact, during the preliminary investigations police have found that the SIMI activists under the leadership of its former chief had arrived in Indore for the outfit's annual meeting to finalize the training programme for its members. The same has been voiced by the Indore Range IG Anil Kumar. The arrest of seven more SIMI activists from Madhya Pradesh underlines the fact that the Jihadis have succeeded in expanding their theatre of violence without any hindrance. The nabbing of the key leaders of the banned outfit gives just a peek of the real dimension of penetration of this terrorist organization in Madhya Pradesh. But of course, this is only the tip of the iceberg. One can only imagine how many more terrorists are waiting in the wings and raring to rage a war on the state and innocent civilians. It has also come to light that Nagori and his terror merchants were planning to target senior BJP leaders, including L K Advani and Narendra Modi for their alleged roles in Babri Masjid demolition and post Godhra riots respectively.

The police may have their own reasons for patting themselves for swooping on a prime catch like Nagori but isn't it surprising that the banned organization carried out its clandestine activities for so many years without the knowledge of our security and intelligence agencies? The ban came into effect in 2002 obviously did not contain the outfit's influences that went on to mastermind the 2006 Mumbai blasts that killed 187 people as well as twin blasts at Gateway of India and Zaveri Bazar in 2003 killing 57 people, with much ease. One also wonders, how Nagori, who had been on a run since 2001, could avoid being arrested all these years and that too while hiding in Indore.

Interestingly, SIMI was set up in 1977 in India outside the precincts of Aligarh Muslim University campus. Initially, its aim was to provide Islamic education to the youth and also free Islam from the shackles of so called modern perversions. But things began to change drastically since 1992 after the Babri Masjid demolition. Consequently, SIMI cadres across the country showed an unprecedented rise with deep penetration in Maharashtra, Assam, Bihar and also southern states. By 2001, the outfit became the new face of terror. Incidentally, the same year the radical group was proscribed and Nagori escaped the police dragnet. By then, charges against the outfit linking it with terror activities started mounting. Reports of their alleged links Pak-based Hizbul and Bangladesh's HUJI also started piling up. Now with the latest arrests, a clear picture of the new phase of terrorism has begun to emerge.

In any case, a foreign-based Jihadi movement can't set up base unless there is a local organization at its beck and call. It was during the NDA regime that the outfit was banned close on the heels of Parliament attack. But the role played by the UPA Govt. in cracking down on terror leaves much to be desired. As the number of high profile attacks goes on increasing, so does the buzz about the government's soft on terror policy. The policies and the strategy of the Centre in dealing with the menace are pathetically inadequate to halt this dangerous drift. The timid approach of the Congress is partly due to its vote bank compulsions which invariably end up giving a long rope to Islamic Jihadists thereby hurting our national interests.

Though the dreaded outfit has also been banned officially, it still has a strong presence in India courtesy its foot soldiers in every nook and corner of the country. It may be common knowledge that the organization is active in more than 35 districts of UP , but authorities can do nothing about it. The reason is that the issue is linked to political ambitions under the false assumption that a crackdown on the outfit will not be welcomed by the Muslims across the state.

In other words, it would mean a political harakiri and the state government is most unlikely to embark on such a suicidal initiative.

It is quite disturbing that while India has been reeling under the scourge of terrorism for decades now, it is yet to put in place concrete laws which may act as preventive mechanism to deter terrorist strikes aimed at the country.

Ironically, politics is played between different parties even over such sensitive issue like national security. Coupled with that India's security apparatus as well as intelligence gathering has nothing laudable about it. What makes matters worse is imprecise investigation and ex-parte prosecution. Also the fact that a country that has been fighting terrorism for so long without a strong-anti-terror law deserves due attention.

The result of such slid-shod administration is there for all to see. Naxalism has been threatening the internal security of our country and has set up multiple bases in almost 10 states. Every year, hundreds of lives are lost in Maoist extremism. In spite of such a huge loss of life, the government is yet to acknowledge these as our internal problems.

On the other hand, India has been incompetent to halt the influx of Pak-perpetuated cross-border terrorism with the explicit aim of destabilizing the communal harmony of our country.

Having said that, there is a need to have strident anti-terror strategy in place. More than that a strong political will to counter the forces of terror is the pressing need of the hour. It is a pity that we lack the conviction to sincerely follow up our loud assertions on the ground.

Sunita Vakil