By IANS,
New Delhi : A more stringent anti-terrorism law is on the anvil, with the cabinet, at a special meeting Wednesday evening, discussing legal measures to check the rise in terror attacks across India.
The special cabinet meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, considered possible anti-terror legislation with stricter provisions to boost the security agencies’ fight againt extremism – especially in the light of a series of terror strikes in Jaipur, Bangalore, Ahmedabad and New Delhi.
National Security Advisor M.K. Narayanan made a presentation on the issue during the cabinet meet, highy placed sources who did not wish to be identified, told IANS.
They added that a proposed federal anti-terrorism agency may not materialise soon, as law and order is a state subject and the states’ consensus is necessary to set up such an agency.
Addressing the Governors’ Conference here earlier in the evening, the prime minister said: “We are actively considering legislation to further strengthen the substantive anti-terrorism law in line with the global consensus on the fight against terrorism.”
Referring to the serial blasts in the four cities, Manmohan Singh said a “number of practical suggestions” were on the table for tightening the infrastructure to deal with terrorism.
“One suggestion is to set up a central agency to investigate and prosecute all terrorist incidents. This need not necessarily be a Federal Investigative Agency, but could be a central agency which can assist the states in investigation whenever a major terrorist event takes place,” he said.
On Saturday, 24 people were killed and nearly 100 injured in five explosions in popular marklet places and business districts in the national capital.