By IANS,
Shillong : The Meghalaya Police Thursday claimed to have cracked a terror plot to assassinate the Bharatiya Janata Party’s prime ministerial candidate L.K. Advani with the arrest here of a Muslim youth who had allegedly sent a “terror” mail to him.
“We have arrested a youth named Mominul Haq, probably the one who had sent the email from a cyber cafe in Shillong. We have also detained about eight more suspects in the same case,” S.B. Singh, Inspector General of Meghalaya Police (Special Branch), told IANS.
“Investigations are on to ascertain if these people have any links with the Indian Mujahideen. We are not taking the threat mail lightly,” Singh added.
Media outlets here Thursday received an emial, purportedly sent by the Indian Mujahideen, threatening to kill Advani using suicide bombers during his visit here next week.
Singh said Haq’s antecedents were being investigated.
“For security reasons, we would not like to divulge more about the case,” he added.
“We have vowed to kill Advani on his visit to Shillong on 29th Sept. We have already convened a meeting of field commanders to decide as to how revenge could be taken,” said the email, sent from the ID [email protected], and was claimed to be from Ali Hussain Badr, a “field commander” of the Indian Mujaheeden in the northeast.
Advani is due to arrive in Assam’s main city of Guwahati Sept 28 and then visit Shillong Sept 29. He will be in the northeast on a three-day visit as part of the BJP’s Sankalp rally, a country-wide campaign that aims to bring the party to power at next year’s general elections.
“Our main objective is to blow Advani into pieces. Our suicide bombers are ready for this prestigious assignment,” the email said. It charged Advani and the BJP with the demolition of the Babri Masjid in 1992 and the recent attacks on churches across India.
“Advani’s Hindutva demand seems to push India into a fascist mould and as is well known, the proclaimed and identified main enemy of the architects of Hindutva are the Muslims and the Christians,” the email said.
“Apart from the Babri Masjid demolition, the Gujarat massacre and the recent attacks on churches in Orissa, Karnataka, and some parts of Madhya Pradesh, Advani has always tried to portray the Muslims and Christians as inveterate enemies of the Hindus,” the email added, warning the authorities to restrain people from attending Advani’s scheduled programme in Shillong Sep 29 to avoid casualties.
“We want to avoid casualties of civilians and our main objective is to blow Advani into pieces. This will be history in the making in the state of Meghalaya when our suicide bombers will rock Shillong,” the email said.
“Stop us if you can. We have already set our foot in Shillong to kill Advani. Please do not disregard our mail or else we will not be held responsible for any casualties to civilians. And for your kind information, I am sending you this mail from a cyber cafe in Shillong,” it added.
Meanwhile, the Meghalaya government has taken the threat very seriously and convened a high-level security meeting to discuss the email.
“We would take all security measures to ensure Advani’s safety and this email should not dissuade him from visiting the state,” Meghalaya Chief Minister Donkupar Roy told reporters.
In New Delhi, the BJP said there would be no change in Advani’s travel plans.