By IANS,
Gandhinaga: The Gujarat government will construct the country’s first prison for terrorists within one year, Minister of State for Home Amit Shah announced in the state assembly Thursday.
Shah said that 50 acres of land has been apportioned for the purpose near the state capital and a token amount of Rs.1 crore has been kept aside for the purpose. “However, we will ensure that the project, expected to cost a total of Rs.20 crore and accommodate 600 prisoners, is completed within one year,” he added.
The minister praised the anti-terror record of the state government, noting that only one terror incident – the Ahmedabad serial blasts – had taken place in the eight years of the Bharatiya janata Party rule in the state.
“This has largely been because of the strong zero tolerance policy of the present chief minister. In the one blasts serial that did take place, the administration moved with speed putting the perpetrators behind bars and ensuring a speedy trial,” he added.
Congress leader Arjun Modvadia sought to bring out the contradictions in the government’s claim, noting that if there has been just one incident, what was the need for constructing a prison exclusively to house 600 terrorists.
Defending the decision, the minister said that a separate prison for terrorists was essential because their inter-mixing with other criminals aided in the creation of sleeper cells. Therefore an isolated facility was essential.