Tough Laws

Subhashis Mittra

The decision to frame a national counter-terrorism policy to fight the entire ‘ecosystem’ of terrorism is an idea whose time has come. The idea was mooted during a two-day anti-terror conference organised by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on 7-8 November 2024 in New Delhi. The event saw various central and state agencies, besides police forces, on the same page on the need for having stronger collaborative efforts backed by a standardised strategy to combat terrorism, particularly with respect to cybercrime.

The participants were of the view that a unified approach be evolved to deal with terrorism across states in the interest of national security. At the end of the two-day meet, a consensus emerged on the importance of a holistic, well-rounded strategy, encompassing the entire national framework extending from the government down to the lowest levels of policing and investigation. According to an NIA statement, ‘Participants called for global cooperation to tackle misuse of social media by terrorists amid divergent content moderation policies.’

Another common view was careful and judicious application of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act to avoid its potential misuse and ensure its effectiveness in combating terrorism.

Setting the tone of the event, Union home minister Amit Shah underlined the government’s commitment to creating a strong ecosystem against terrorism and eliminating it. He said there was a need for adoption of a coordinated approach, from police stations up to the director general of police (DGP) office, to deal with new challenges like terror financing and crypto-currencies.

“States have their own geographical and constitutional limitations, while terrorism and terrorists have no boundaries,” he said, explaining that terrorists engage in both international and interstate conspiracies, and to develop an effective strategy against them, “we need to build a strong system through conferences like this. This will help curb activities such as terrorism, narcotics, and hawala operations, which threaten the country’s borders and economy.” Shah said that right from beat officers to the Director General of NIA, the entire system should be successfully made aware of the threats posed by terrorism.

A highlight of the event was the unveiling of the NIA’s motto by Shah, who also launched the handbook of standard operating procedures (SOPs) specifically designed for investigations under the UAPA.

Shah also announced several measures to make India’s anti-terror fight more impactful. The ministry of home