early times report
JAMMU, Nov 16: Dr. Varinder Sharma, co-convenor, health cell, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Jammu & Kashmir said despite the Jammu and Kashmir Police (JKP) showing exemplary vigilance in uncovering a terrorist module in Faridabad, they fell victim to an explosion triggered by the same ammonium nitrate recovered during the operation. The same type of explosive, he noted, was used in the Faridabad terror car blast near Delhi’s Red Fort that had earlier taken 13 lives. Expressing grief over the tragic explosion at the Nowgam Police Station in Srinagar that claimed nine lives, he termed it a painful reminder of gaps in the handling of terror-related explosives.
Dr. Sharma questioned why a large quantity of highly unstable ammonium nitrate was transported from Faridabad to Srinagar when only a small sample was required. He said that moving such dangerous material across states was unnecessary and led to predictable consequences. “This tragic incident teaches us that outdated practices must be re-evaluated. It is neither practical nor safe to shift bulk explosives merely because an FIR is filed elsewhere,” he stated.
He asserted that every state now has a functional and capable Anti-Terror Squad (ATS) equipped to conduct testing of explosives without transporting them long distances. He also questioned why, once the Faridabad module was clearly identified as a terrorism-linked case expected to be taken over by the NIA, the explosives were still shifted to Srinagar. “Had more vigilance been exercised and the remaining associates of the Faridabad module traced immediately, the Red Fort blast and the subsequent police station tragedy might have been averted,” he emphasised.
Raising a serious alarm, Dr. Varinder Sharma highlighted the disturbing rise in the involvement of white-collar professionals in terror modules. He warned that these individuals, camouflaged as respectable members of society, are playing dangerous roles in logistics, planning, and technical operations. “This infiltration is extremely dangerous and must be identified, circled, and neutralised before it is too late,” he cautioned. |
