Reference Auto

So, who would want to foot the bill (worth crores of rupees) to keep terrorist Ajmal Kasab alive? Well, at least the Indian government would, if nobody else in the world.

The astronomical sums spent to keep extremist elements safe and sound was well known but came to light when the Maharashtra government refused to foot the bill worth Rs 11 crore spent on 200 special forces commandos of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police or ITBP to guard Mumbai terror accused Ajmal Kasab, who has been lodged at the fortified Arthur Road Jail.

Maharashtra government officials were readying to write to ITBP that the Centre was equally responsible for footing the bill as the 26/11 issue was a national one and not just Mumbai’s.

Well actually, this is not all so far as expenses on Kasab are concerned. There are bullet proof vests, food along with other arrangements needed to maintain the high security environment, which escalate the costs substantially.

On February 21, the Bombay High Court had upheld the death sentence of Ajmal Kasab that was passed by a lower court. Kasab, who is believed to have killed 56 people with another aide and terrorist Abu Ismail, can now move the Supreme Court.

He killed Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) chief Hemant Karkare and Ashok Kamte, additional commissioner of Mumbai Police.

Twenty-four-year-old Kasab was one of the 10 terrorists from Pakistan who entered India via sea and attacked several landmarks in Mumbai, including the iconic Taj Hotel and The Trident, among others, in November 2008 that killed 170 people and injured over 230.

Despite this dreaded terror act, Ajmal Kasab is being looked after “well” by the Indian authorities, draining crores of tax payers money. Inspite of being given the death sentence, it seems he could stay alive for the next two decades.

Can victims of terrorism or people whose relatives have fallen prey to the bullets of terrorists ever hope to get justice with the government’s apathetic response to such elements?

We in India want to get our hands on David Headley and Tahawwur Rana, who were part of the team that coordinated the 26/11 terror strikes, even though the government has shown how shoddy it can be in dealing with terrorists.

Remember how the Indian Airlines flight was hijacked to Kandahar in Afghanistan in 1999 and passengers were taken hostage. They were freed after one of the most wanted terrorists Masood Azhar was released by our country’s authorities.

Also, the government has been dilly-dallying over the fate of Parliament attack accused Afzal Guru and such flip-flop only indicates that India has no clear-cut policy to deal with terror elements.

A soft approach will encourage extremists to carry out more and more attacks on Indian soil.

So, as a start, can reviving the Prevention of Terrorist Act or POTA send a hard message to terrorist elements to stop their attack and ensure that crores of tax payers money is not drained for the ‘well being’ of India’s enemies?