The ministry of home affairs (MHA) on Tuesday told Parliament that inclination towards radical ideologies in India is minuscule, at a time when some politicians and activists have raised concerns about communal flare-ups and instances of religious indoctrination in the country.
“Radicalisation by the global terrorist groups like ISIS, al Qaeda, etc, is one of the most challenging problems faced by countries all over the world. In the Indian context, some foreign agencies inimical to India along with global terrorist groups have been making efforts to radicalise people. However, inclination towards radical ideologies is minuscule as compared to the population of the country owing to various factors and efforts by the government,” the home ministry told Parliament.
The ministry also listed out steps being taken by the government to address the situation. These include: “Ensuring universal coverage of various government welfare schemes without discrimination. Special schemes for un-served and underserved communities/areas. Promotion of composite culture and coexistence among various communities. Constitutional safeguards to minorities. Institutional efforts for ensuring fair representation of minorities and other less-represented communities in all spheres of life.”
The MHA also said that there is an exclusive ministry — ministry of minority affairs— for overall policy, coordination, evaluation, and review of the regulatory and development programmes of the minority communities.
“Apart from the above, the government has created a counter terrorism and counter radicalisation division in the ministry of home affairs to help and coordinate with various security and law enforcement agencies. Government of India has also proscribed a number of organisations as terrorist organisation/unlawful association under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967,” the MHA said.
There have been multiple cases of killings recently where agencies are looking at the radicalisation angle.
In the murder of tailor Kanhaiya Lal in Udaipur, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) is probing whether the accused were indoctrinated. The sleuths have found that the killers were members of various WhatsApp groups which also had a few Pakistan-based phone numbers. Riaz Akhtari and Ghouse Mohammad were allegedly radicalised and killed Lal after he supported the controversial views of suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma on Prophet Muhammad.
In another similar case in Maharashtra, some youths killed medical professional Umesh Kolhe on June 21 in Amravati for allegedly backing Nupur Sharma’s remarks.
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