By KUNA,
New Delhi : Indian Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh Tuesday launched a scathing attack on Pakistan saying it was behind the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, that it was a haven for terrorist organizations, and that lately, it was whipping up war hysteria (against India) in the aftermath of the attacks.
Addressing a Chief Ministers’ Conference on internal security in New Delhi, he said the evidence which India shared with Pakistan Monday showed that Pakistan-based state actors backed 26/11 terror attack. He directly blamed the 26/11 terror attacks on Pakistan-based terrorist organization Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).
Accusing Pakistan of sheltering terrorists, the minister also said that India needed a zero-tolerance policy on terror which would be able to counter terrorists’ plans.
The chief ministers meeting is a regular event convened to strengthen the Centre-State relations in the federation of India.
This year, it assumes added significance as it is convened in the aftermath of the Mumbai terror strikes which claimed nearly 195 lives.
Terror is the main agenda of the meeting, and at the day-long brainstorming session on the issue, the Indian Government is expected to ask the state governments to pull up their socks to fight terrorism.
Speaking at the conference, India’s Home Minister P Chidambaram said that India needs to “raise the level of preparedness and response time” to the “sophisticated” terror attacks in the country.
He also urged the state governments to work together with the Centre in order to combat terror and enhance the state’s anti-terror mechanism.
“I urge the state governments to enhance the anti-terror and intelligence sharing mechanism to jointly combat terror,” Chidambaram said while addressing the chief ministers of all 29 states in India.
It is believed that besides terrorism, strengthening of the intelligence network, security of the coastline and key establishments, including atomic sites, will also be discussed at the conference.