'ISI hand in planting of bombs suspected'
Swati Das
The Times of India
June 1, 1999
Title: 'ISI hand in planting of bombs suspected'
Author: Swati Das
Publication: The Times of India
Date: June 1, 1999
Preliminary investigation into the planting of bombs in different
parts of Tamil Nadu and recovery of ex-plosives here and Kerala have
cast a suspicion that pro-Pakistani fundamentalists are involved, said
chief minister M. Karunanidhi on Monday.
Talking to the media, he revealed that two more time-bombs of the same
nature were recovered by a watchman from the com-pound of the
Inspector-General of Police (Prisons) on Sunday, at Anna Salai.
He said that with the explosives found in Kerala, the matter has
inter-state ramifications and there-fore the suspicion was that apart
from the banned Al-Umma and Jihad Committee, pro-Pakistani
fundamentalist are involved. When asked if Pakistani agency, the
Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), was involved, Mr Karunanidhi said
that he did not rule out "the involvement of the Pakistani
intelligence agency ISI".
He claimed that the explosives found were expensive and it could not
have been done by those who do not have "money power".
He announced that a special investigating team headed by the Crime
Branch-CID Inspector-General of Police D. Manoharan will investigate
into the incidents.
Asked if there was an intelligence failure as the police was unable to
get information about planting of such bombs, Mr Karunanidhi defended
that there was no failure as the bombs were detected because the
police were alert.
He went on to point out that 86,000 police personnel for 6 crore
population in the state does not facilitate the police to he present
everywhere.
Commenting on the motive behind planting the bombs at police
institutions, Mr Karunanidhi said that the main aim was to inactivate
the police force and paralyse the administration.
When a scribe questioned if the incidents were a sequence to the
alliance between the BJP and the DMK, Mr Karunanidhi revealed that the
Centre had six month ago warned that he and his son and Chennai mayor
M.K. Stalin were already in the bit-list of fundamentalists.
He, however, declined to reveal the name of the fundamentalist
organisation.
"I did not have any alliance with the BJP then. Even INL (Indian
National League) leader Abdul Lateef is also in that hit list, though
not in the 'Z' category," Mr Karunanidhi said.
Commenting further on the possible political ramification of the
episode, Mr Karunanidhi quipped: "Mahatma Gandhi was killed be-cause
he was striving for Hindu-Muslim unity. Though I am not a Mahatma
Gandhi, 1 am ready to face whoever comes to finish me off."
He said that 75 persons have been arrested following the recovery of
explosives in Tiruchy. The explosives, 16 kg, found in Tamil Nadu
were displayed by the police here.
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