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SOUTH ASIA INTELLIGENCE REVIEW
Weekly Assessments & Briefings
Volume 14, No. 46, May 16, 2016

Data and assessments from SAIR can be freely published in any form with credit to the South Asia Intelligence Review of the
South Asia Terrorism Portal


ASSESSMENT

INDIA
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Assam: 'Jihadi' Threats
Nijeesh N.
Research Assistant, Institute for Conflict Management

Amidst ongoing insurgent activities of various ethnic armed groups (EAGs) and the political unrest during the just concluded State Assembly elections, Assam faces a growing Islamist terrorist threat from within, from neighboring States, as well as from bordering countries.

On May 12, 2016, four extremists belonging to the Muslim Tiger Force of Assam (MTFA), identified as Ismail Ali, Mohidul Islam, Mouizinur Ahmed and Saiyyuddin Islam were arrested during a search operation carried out by the Army and Assam Police at Abhayapuri in Bongaigaon District. Three firearms, including a stolen 'licensed' factory-made pistol and two country-made pistols, were recovered from the militants who are suspected to be supplying arms to Muslim extremist groups active in the region. According to Police sources, the militants were involved in several cases of extortion and kidnapping.

On April 20, 2016, the Chirang Police arrested seven suspected cadres of Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) from two different areas in the Chirang District of Assam. Five of them were arrested from the Dawkanagar area; another two, including the imam (prayer leader) of Rajapara Masjid (mosque), were arrested from the Amguri area. Bodoland Territorial Area District (BTAD) Inspector General of Police (IGP) L.R. Bishnoi stated, “All these jihadis were operating in Assam under Bangladesh-based jihadi module JMB. They had set up a camp for imparting physical training and there were plans to impart arms training later. Two people came from West Bengal to impart training to the jihadis here. We have got their names and addresses and we are in touch with our counterparts in West Bengal to arrest them”. He also disclosed, "After the police busted a training camp in Dawkanagar in September 2015, initial probe pointed to the presence of at least 28 jihadi cadres in the area. But with the latest arrests, the total number of arrested jihadi cadres shot up to 29 and interrogation revealed that at least seven others are on the run." He added that the numbers may go up further.

On April 17, 2016, the Kokrajhar and Chirang Police, in a joint operation, arrested four suspected jihadis, from three different locations in Kokrajhar District. A grenade, a revolver, seven rounds of M20 ammunition, two army camouflage dresses and five mobile phones were recovered from their possession. Later it was found that the arrestees were part of a JMB module that was planning to train local Muslims at a camp in Daukhanagar village in Chirang District to launch attacks on cadres of the National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB) and local Bodos. Assam has a history of bitter clashes between Muslims and Bodos in the BTAD area. The latest of such clashes were reported in May 2014, when 46 Muslim settlers were slaughtered. 

On April 6, 2016, the Army, in a joint search operation with Dhubri Police, arrested one MTFA terrorist, Mohammad Sahidul Islam Miah, from Rupsi near Basbari in Dhubri District.

According to partial data compiled by the South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP), at least 22 Islamist extremists, including 12 JMB, six MTFA, one Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and three whose affiliations were unidentified, have been arrested thus far in 2016 (data till May 15, 2016). In 2015, 57 Islamic terrorists were arrested, including 20 JMB cadres, 19 MTFA cadres, 10 Muslim United Liberation Tigers of Assam (MULTA) cadres, one cadre each of Muslim Liberation Army (MLA) and Peoples United Liberation Front (PULF), and six whose affiliations were not identified. State Parliamentary Affairs Minister Rockybul Hussain informed the State Assembly on December 15, 2014, that between January 2001 to November 2014, a total of 130 Islamist extremists, including 106 MULTA militants, 14 Harakat-ul-Mujahideen (HuM) militants, and 10 JMB militants, were arrested in the State.

A majority of the Islamist militant groups in Assam were founded between 1990 and 1996 with the prime objective of safeguarding the ‘overall interests’ of the minority Muslim communities in the region. According to SATP, at least 20 Islamist terror formations have operated in Assam at different periods. On December 8, 2015, Rockybul Hussain informed the State Assembly that three Islamist militant groups, MULTA, JMB and HuM, were presently active in the State.

Assam for long has been threatened by Pakistan’s Inter Services Intelligence (ISI)-backed Islamist extremist groups. The accidental blast in a rented house at Khagragarh in Burdwan (West Bengal) on October 2, 2014, in which two JMB militants were killed and another was injured, and the subsequent investigation by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in the case, opened a Pandora’s Box after the NIA took over the case on October 10, 2014. According to the NIA charge sheet filed on March 30, 2015, and a subsequent supplementary charge sheet dated July 23, 2015, the NIA has charged 27 persons, including two persons from Assam. Of the 27 charge sheeted persons, 16 have so far been arrested, of which two have been arrested from Assam. Another nine persons, who have not been charge sheeted, have also been arrested, two among them from Assam.

The NIA claimed that, during the course of investigations, it had been found that operatives of JMB had established their networks in different parts of the country, including Assam, and “were engaged in preparation of bombs, ammunition/arms, maintaining hideouts and organizing terrorist training camps in pursuance of a larger conspiracy to organise terrorist attacks in different parts of India and in Bangladesh.” One of the charge sheeted persons, Lal Mohammed aka Ibrahim, a JMB cadre arrested by Jharkhand Police on April 18, 2015 (NIA officially arrested him on April 27, 2015), reportedly revealed to interrogators that JMB’s sabotage plans in Assam were to counter Bodo ‘aggression’.

Significantly, on September 16, 2015, the Chirang District Police and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) busted an Islamic fundamentalist ‘training camp’ and arrested three suspects, seizing weapons which were being used to train cadres in the camp in Daukhanagar. Later, the Police confirmed that the arrested persons were associated with the JMB and that MULTA was the brain behind the training camp. Intelligence Bureau (IB) reports also suggested that JMB uses MULTA as the umbrella organization of various jihadi elements in Assam to carry out organizational activities, including collecting money, imparting basic motivational training and brainwashing youth who are willing to join.

Meanwhile, reports indicated that a new jihadi formation, MTFA was formed to take 'revenge’ for the massacre of Muslims in the BTAD in May 2014. Though specific details about the outfit are not available in the open source, according to the SATP database, at least 25 MTFA militants have been arrested so far. The first reported arrest took place on March 13, 2015, when a MTFA militant, identified as Anwar Hussain was arrested from Jalabila in the Kokrajhar District. According to Army sources, Anwar Hussain was involved in procurement of arms and had plans to create violence during the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) elections, which were held in April 2015.

Major global Islamist terrorist groups such as al Qaeda and IS are also reportedly eying the region. Notably, at the time of its formation in September 2014, Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) had specifically mentioned Assam as its target, along with Gujarat and Jammu and Kashmir. Similarly, IS in its ‘world dominion map’ has covered Assam among other parts of India. Although there are no visible signs of presence of these terror formations in the State, rising interest in the IS through Internet is a disturbing aspect. The then Director General of Police (DGP) of Assam Khagen Sarma had stated on September 29, 2015, “Assam has religious fundamentalists and that has generated a lot of interest in the ISIS. Hits in the Internet photos of ISIS is very high in Assam". Moreover, a suspected IS operative, identified as Suman Aziz Laskar, was arrested from Silchar Medical College (SMC) in Cachar District on February 6, 2016. Following recent incidents of killings of secularist activists/writers/bloggers by suspected Islamist terrorists in Bangladesh, the Union Minister of State for Home Affairs in India, Haribhai Parthibhai Chaudhary, informed the Rajya Sabha (Upper House of Indian Parliament) on April 27, 2016, that Indian security agencies were also concerned about possible attacks by the Islamic State in two bordering Indian States, Assam and West Bengal.

In addition, subsequent to the arrests and recovery of arms across BTAD between April 17 and 20, 2016, it has come to light that jihadi forces in lower Assam Districts were trying to establish links with arms smugglers of Nagaland and Myanmar to gain direct access to the underground market of sophisticated arms. Though the State Police have not officially confirmed this possible nexus between jihadi modules and other ethnic militant outfits of the region, it was reported that some gunrunners in the Barak Valley were helping Islamist extremist modules secure access to the clandestine arms market in neighboring countries like Myanmar. In recent years, Assam has recorded a steep hike in cases registered in connection with the Illegal arms smuggling. State Police records shows that, while 492 cases were registered under the Arms Act in the state in 2010, the number rose to 511 in 2015.

Besides, large scale illegal flow of substantial amounts of money from the Middle Eastern countries to Assam through Kerala has also becomes a major cause of concern for security agencies in the State. According to an April 24, 2016, report, security agencies had identified some religious organisations in the Districts of Morigaon and Nagaon in Assam, which may have received such illegally transferred money. Though the exact reasons for such huge transfers of funds are yet to be ascertained, security agencies suspect that some unscrupulous persons might be using this money for indoctrination and radicalization. Considering its ‘least developed region’ status in the State, the lower Assam region, especially the BTC areas, could also be a soft target for Islamist extremist elements. Police also confirmed that recently arrested JMB members were not planning any major action in Assam as yet, and were concentrating mostly on recruiting from lower Assam Districts and creating a base in Assam for future operations.

The demographic transition in the State and the problem of the influx of illegal Bangladeshi migrants further complicates the situation. Though the Government has started the process of updating the National Register of Citizens (NRC) data on February 27, 2015, to identify those who illegally entered Assam after 1971, implementation has been sluggish. Moreover, Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju, on May 10, 2016, informed the Rajya Sabha that, “at least 43,000 Bangladeshi nationals, who entered India on valid documents, have vanished during the last four years, whereas only 19,995 could be deported during the same period.” According to him, “In Assam, the detection and deportation of illegal migrants are done through the Foreigners Tribunals established under the provision of Foreigners Tribunal Act, 1946. Altogether 100 Foreigners Tribunals are working at present towards detection and deportation of illegal migrants in Assam”.

Though Assam has seen a steady decline in insurgency-related violence after 2014, the recent spurt in jihadi activities and the nexus between jihadi elements and ethnic militant groups in the region make the security situation in the State vulnerable. At a juncture when pan-Islamist terrorist networks are trying to make inroads into Bangladesh, with which the region shares a vast and “porous” border, extreme vigilance on the part of both the State Government as well the Centre, to strengthen security along the border, is necessary.

BANGLADESH
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Executing the Designer of Death
S. Binodkumar Singh
Research Associate, Institute for Conflict Management

On May 11, 2016, Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI) amir (chief) Motiur Rahman Nizami (75), who masterminded the formation of the ruthless militia Al Badr that unleashed terror against Bengalis erstwhile East Pakistan, killed unarmed civilians, raped women and destroyed properties during the Liberation War of 1971, was executed at Dhaka Central Jail. Nizami was sentenced to death on October 29, 2014, by the International Crimes Tribunal-1 (ICT-1) after being found guilty on eight of the 16 charges brought against him. The four charges which brought him the death penalty included involvement in the killing of intellectuals; the murder of 450 civilians, and the rape of 30 to 40 women in Bausgari and Demra villages in Pabna District; the killing of 52 people in Dhulaura village in Pabna District; and the killing of 10 persons and rape of three women in Karamja village in Pabna District. He was also sentenced to imprisonment for life on the charges of involvement in the killing of Kasim Uddin and two others in Pabna District; torture and murder of Sohrab Ali of Brishalikha village in Pabna District; torture and killing at Mohammadpur Physical Training Centre in Dhaka city; and killing of freedom fighters Rumi, Bodi, Jewel and Azad at Old MP Hostel in Dhaka city.

Nizami had served as Minister of Agriculture in the then Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP)-led coalition Government between 2001 and 2006. He is the fourth JeI leader to have been hanged for war crimes, after JeI Assistant Secretary Abdul Quader Mollah (65), known as ‘Mirpurer Koshai (Butcher of Mirpur), who was hanged  at Dhaka Central Jail on December 12, 2013; JeI Senior Assistant Secretary General Muhammad Kamaruzzaman (63), the third most senior figure in the JeI, who was hanged at Dhaka Central Jail on April 11, 2015, and JeI Secretary General Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed (67) who was hanged simultaneously with BNP Standing Committee member Salauddin Quader Chowdhury (66) at Dhaka Central Jail on November 22, 2015.

On May 3, 2016, ICT-1 sentenced Gazi Abdul Mannan (88), Nasiruddin Ahmed (62), Shamsuddin Ahmed (60) and Hafiz Uddin (66) to death; and Azharul Islam (60) to jail until death. They were all members of JeI. Seven charges were brought against them and the court found them guilty on all charges. On the first charge, the killing of eight people in Karimganj on November 12, 1971, Shamsuddin, Nasiruddin and Mannan were awarded the death penalty, while Hafiz and Azharul were awarded jail until death. Nasiruddin was the lone accused on the second charge of the killing of Miah Hossain of Ayla village on November 13, 1971. On the third charge, Hafiz was given the death sentence, while Shamsuddin, Nasiruddin and Azharul were awarded jail until death, for the abduction and killing of Abdur Gafur of Kalatali on September 26, 1971. All the five were awarded jail until death for the abduction, torture and killing of Fazlur Rahman of Atkapara on August 23, 1971, the fourth charge. Shamsuddin received the death penalty on the fifth charge, the killing of Paresh Chandra Sarkar of Ramnagar on September 7, 1971. According to the sixth charge, Mannan was involved in the torture and killing of Abu Bakar Siddique and Rapali Miah on August 25, 1971, and the tribunal handed down a sentence of imprisonment until death. Mannan was also given five years' rigorous imprisonment on the seventh charge of arson and vandalism in Atkapara on September 15, 1971.

On February 2, 2016, ICT-1 sentenced to death Obaidul Haque aka Taher (66), an activist of the Nezam-e-Islam (NeI) and Ataur Rahman aka Noni (62), an activist of the Muslim League (ML) for killing seven persons on October 19, 1971, and for killing another six after abducting and torturing them on November 15 and 16, 1971. They were also sentenced to imprisonment until death for killing Liberation War organizer Fazlur Rahman Talukder, and looting and setting on fire Baushi Bazar on August 17, 1971; and for killing Dabir Hossain on October 4, 1971 after abducting and torturing him. Both were acquitted on two other charges which include grabbing the houses of Moloy Biswas and Shrish Chandra Sarkar and ‘deporting’ their family members in mid-May 1971, and for killing 15 persons including teacher Kamini Chakrabarty in early October 1971.

It is useful to recall that, the Sheikh Hasina Wajed led-Government constituted the ICT-1 on March 25, 2010, with the objective of bringing the perpetrators of War Crimes to justice, and subsequently, ICT-2 on March 22, 2012, to speed up the War Crimes Trials. So far, the two ICTs have indicted 57 leaders, including 37 from JeI, seven from the ML, five from NeI, four from BNP, two from Pakistan Democratic Party (PDP) and two from the Jatiya Party (JP). Verdicts against 31 of these indicted leaders have already been delivered – 23 were awarded the death sentence while the remaining eight received life sentences. Five of the 23, including Nizami, who received the death sentence, have already been executed, while 18 other cases are currently pending with the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court.

As in earlier cases, JeI called a countrywide 24-hour hartal (general strike) on May 11, 2016, protesting the execution of its party chief Motiur Rahman Nizami. Earlier, JeI, on May 5, 2016, had called for a countrywide 24-hour hartal, denouncing the Supreme Court’s order that upheld Nizami’s death sentence. However, unlike previous hartals called by JeI, protesting against war crimes’ verdicts against party leaders, which had resulted in massive street violence, these two protests were largely ignored across the country and no major acts of violence were reported. Nevertheless, there were a few minor incidents, such as the May 11, 2016, protest by cadres of JeI-Islami Chhatra Shibir ( ICS) who hurled bricks at the Police during a clash at Chawkbazar Parade Ground in Chittagong city over a gayebana namaz-e-janaza (funeral prayer in absentia) for Nizami. Some 5,000 JeI-ICS cadres participated in the janaza led by Chittagong city unit JeI chief Shamshul Islam. Security Forces (SFs) managed to disperse the JeI-ICS cadres by firing blank shots. No one was injured in the incident. Further, on May 12, 2016, Police arrested 28 JeI-ICS cadres in connection with vandalism, arson and sabotage activities, including 16 from Bogra District, five from Chittagong District, four from Barisal District, two from Cox's Bazar and one from Gaibandha District.

However, the trend of targeting intellectuals/ activists/ secularists/ or alleged ‘apostates’/ ‘blasphemers’, which commenced after the Shahbagh Movement of February 2013 seeking the death penalty for War Criminals of the 1971 genocide, appears to be escalating. 12 persons were killed in 2013; four persons in 2014; and nine in 2015. Disturbingly, since the beginning of the 2016, 11 intellectuals/ activists/ secularists/ or alleged ‘apostates’/ ‘blasphemers’ have already been killed across the country by suspected Islamist terrorists. In the latest of the series of such killings, on May 6, 2016, Mohammad Shahidullah (65), a pir (revered religious instructor, usually of Sufi orientation) was hacked to death at Jumarpara village of Tanore upazila (sub-district) in Rajshahi District. Further, on May 14, 2016, Mawng Shoi Wuu (70), a Buddhist monk was found dead with his throat-slit with a sharp weapon at a small monastery at Baishari of Naikhyangchari upazila in Bandarban District. Earlier, nine others were killed across the country by suspected Islamist terrorists.  Significantly, out of the 11 murders in 2016, Daesh (Islamic State, formerly the Islamic State of Iraq and al Sham) claimed responsibility for six. Meanwhile, Ansar al-Islam (Sword of Islam), the purported Bangladesh branch of al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), claimed ‘credit’ for another three. No group has yet claimed the remaining two killings.

The Shiekh Hasina Wajed Government has, however, blamed the BNP-JeI nexus for these incidents, describing them as ‘secret killings’, after the failure of the Opposition to topple the Government. Prime Minister Wajed thus declared, on April 30, 2016, “The BNP-Jamaat clique does not want development of the people. They cannot give anything except burning people to death and destruction. They have chosen the path of killing teachers and common people selectively.”

Rejecting the Prime Minister’s claim, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir stated, on May 13, 2016, “BNP wants trial of those who committed crimes against humanity during our Liberation War. But the trial will have to be held in a transparent manner, ensuring international standard.”

With the hanging of JeI chief Nizami, the Awami League (AL)-led Government has once again reaffirmed its determination to honour its 2008 General Election pledge to bring the War Criminals of the 1971 genocide to justice. The achievements on this count are already remarkable, but, the frequent attacks on liberals, secularists and minorities across the country threaten the tenuous stability that has been achieved in the country. The trials themselves have deepened the polarization in the country between those intent of defending the secular identity asserted through the 1971 Independence movement, and those who seek to introduce a Government purportedly based on ‘Islamic’ principles. This rift presents a growing challenge for the Hasina Wajed regime.

 


NEWS BRIEFS

Weekly Fatalities: Major Conflicts in South Asia
May 9 - 15, 2016

 

Civilians

Security Force Personnel

Terrorists/Insurgents

Total

BANGLADESH

 

Islamist Terrorism

1
0
1
2

Left-wing Extremism

0
0
1
1

BANGLADESH (Total)

1
0
2
3

INDIA

 

Assam

0
0
2
2

Jammu and Kashmir

0
1
0
1

Left-Wing Extremism

 

Chhattisgarh

0
1
2
3

Maharashtra

0
0
1
1

Total (INDIA)

0
2
5
7

PAKISTAN

 

Balochistan

0
2
0
2

KP

5
1
0
6

Punjab

1
0
0
1

Sindh

2
0
0
2

Total (PAKISTAN)

8
3
0
11
Provisional data compiled from English language media sources.


BANGLADESH

JeI amir Motiur Rahman Nizami executed at Dhaka Central Jail for war crimes committed during Liberation War: Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI) amir (chief) Motiur Rahman Nizami (75), the kingpin of notorious Al-Badr force and second top collaborator of the Pakistani occupation forces after former JeI amir Ghulam Azam, was executed at Dhaka Central Jail at 12:10am on May 11. On October 29, 2014, International Crimes Tribunal-1 (ICT-1) sentenced Nizami to death for planning, instigating and executing genocide, murder, rape and deportation among other crimes in Pabna and Dhaka during the 1971 Liberation War. Nizami is the fifth war criminal and fourth JeI leader to have been hanged for war atrocities. Dhaka Tribune, May 12, 2016.

BNP in favour of war crimes trial if held in free and fair manner, says BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir: Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) supports war crimes trials if it is held without any political intention and in a free and fair manner, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said on May 13. Fakhrul at the press briefing also announced that the party will hold protest programmes on May 15 and 16 demanding the withdrawal of the cases filed against the party Chairperson Khaleda Zia. This was the first reaction of the party after the execution of Motiur Rahman Nizami, ameer of the Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI), who was hanged on May 10, 2016, for crimes against humanity that he committed during the country's Liberation War in 1971. Daily Star, May 13, 2016.


INDIA

IS global recruiters set sights on India, says report: Disclosures of recently-arrested Islamic State (IS) recruits revealed that group's global headhunters, including women from Argentina, Sri Lanka and Philippines, are on the prowl for Indian youth who show any leanings to radical views on social media,. Sources said the three women identify themselves as Karen from Philippines, Fatima from Argentina and Eje from Sri Lanka. Also, Counter-terror agencies are closely monitoring nearly 25 motivators, mostly from outside India, who are looking for potential recruits and then indoctrinating them on social media. The details of their functioning have been told to investigators by IS inspired Indians in their interrogation to the National Investigation Agency (NIA). India Today, May 13, 2016.

43,000 Bangladeshis vanished in India in four years, says Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju: At least 43,000 Bangladeshi nationals, who entered India on valid documents, have vanished during the last four years, whereas only 19,995 could be deported during the same period, said Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju. Revealing this, Kiren Rijiju said in a Rajya Sabha (upper house of Parliament) reply that the highest number of 24,364 disappeared in 2011, while 6,761 was deported the same year. Last year (2015), only 116 Bangladeshi nationals disappeared, while 474 were deported. Assam Tribune, May 11, 2016.

FICN worth INR 400 crores in circulation in India, says report: According to the study "Estimation of the quantum of FICN in circulation", conducted by Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata, 250 in every 10,00,000 notes in circulation in India are fake and INR 400 crore worth of such Fake Indian Currency Note (FICN) is in circulation in the country at any given point of time. The study has unearthed FICN worth INR 70 crore are infused into the Indian market every year with agencies only being able to intercept one third of them. The study has further revealed that the detection rate of fake 100 and 500 rupee notes were found to be about the same and higher than the detection rate of 1000 rupee notes by about 10 per cent. The study was based on volumes of FICN detected and cash transaction in the banking sector. The study said that "the detection of FICN is carried out primarily by commercial banks. However, their reporting is irregular too and only three banks - Axis, HDFC and ICICI report about 80 per cent of the detection". The findings have been accepted by the government and a series of strong measures to counter this 'economic terrorism' is being planned. Times of India, May 11, 2016.

Maoists still a 'challenge' in Odisha, says White Paper tabled in State Assembly: Despite Odisha State Government's claim of improvement in Left-Wing Extremism (LWE) situation in the State, it is still a challenge in a number of Districts. The situation is grim in parts of Malkangiri, Koraput, Nuapada, Rayagada, Kandhamal, Kalahandi, Balangir, Nayagarh, Rourkela and Bargarh Police districts, said the White Paper released by the State Government in the State Assembly. There is, however, improvement in the situation in districts like Jajpur, Dhenkanal, Keonjhar, Mayurbhanj, Gajapati, Ganjam, Nabarangpur, Sambalpur, Deogarh and Sundargarh. Times of India, May 11, 2016.

Special FICN Group formed in UMHA to curb FICN circulation in India: A special Fake Indian Currency Note (FICN) Co-ordination (FCORD) Group has been formed in the Union Ministry of home Affairs (UMHA) to share intelligence/information amongst the different Security Agencies of States/Centre to counter the menace of circulation of FICN in the country. The Government has also constituted a Terror Funding & Fake Currency Cell (TFFC) in National Investigation Agency (NIA) to investigate Terror Funding and Fake Currency cases. Business Standard, May 11, 2016.

Mizoram Government accepts HPC-D peace overtures: Mizoram Government accepted the peace overtures of Manipur-based Hmar People's Convention- Democracy (HPC-D) on the condition that the outfit would not indulge in any anti-government activity during the by-elections to the village councils on May 19. Mizoram Home Minister R Lalzirliana on May 11 said the HPC-D, through the Young Mizo Association (YMA) (Tuisual Group) and the central committee of YMA appealed to the State Government to initiate a peaceful negotiation. "We welcome the peace initiative and agreed that any conflict can only be amicably solved through negotiation," he said, adding that the HPC-D was expected not to campaign for any political party or candidate during the polling. Assam Tribune, May 12, 2016.

42 GNLA cadres including its top leaders surrender in Meghalaya during the week: Around 42 cadres of Garo National Liberation Army (GNLA) surrendered in separate incidents in different parts of the Garo Hills region during the past week. The surrendered cadres included 'finance secretary' Belding Marak alias Rakkam, 'area commander' Hedeo Ch Momin alias Cellopa alias Karak, 'action commander' Hedeo Ch Momin, 'area commander' Chingnang and 'deputy area commander' Sengrak M Marak. The Shillong Times; The Sentinel, May 10-14, 2016.

Anti-Hijacking Bill passed in the Lok Sabha: The Anti-Hijacking Bill passed in the Lok Sabha: The Lok Sabha (Lower House of Indian Parliament) cleared the Anti-Hijacking Bill on May 9. It had been cleared by the Rajya Sabha (Upper House of Indian Parliament) earlier. The Bill provides for death penalty to offenders in case hostages or security personnel die, as well as life imprisonment as punishment for the offence. It also provides for the confiscation of movable and immovable property of the accused. The Bill amends the 1982 Act which provided for death penalty for hijackers only in the event of the death of hostages. While the Anti-Hijacking Act of 1982 was tweaked in 1994, successive governments felt the need for a stronger law following the hijacking of Indian Airlines flight IC-814 in December, 1999, and the September 11, 2001 (9/11) attacks on the US. Times of India; May 10, 2016.

Chhattisgarh State Government extended the ban on the CPI-Maoist and its six frontal organisations for another year: Chhattisgarh State Government extended the ban on the CPI-Maoist and its six frontal organisations for another year. "The ban on the CPI (Maoist) and its six frontal organisations has been extended for another one year," a State Home Department official said on May 15. The CPI-Maoist was first banned along with its affiliates in Chhattisgarh in April 2006 under section 3 of Chhattisgarh Special Public Security Act-2005, and since then the State Government has been extending the ban every year. The six frontal organisations of the Maoists that have also been banned are -- Dandakaranya Adivasi Kisan Mazdoor Sangh, Krantikari Adivasi Mahila Sangh, Krantikari Adivasi Balak Sangh, Krantikari Kisan Committee, Mahila Mukti Manch and Jantana Sarkar. The ban will be effective from April 12, 2016, for the next one year, the official added. Hindustan Times, May 16, 2016.


NEPAL

Federal Alliance begins Kathmandu-centric protests with picketing of Singha Durbar: Federal Alliance began their Kathmandu-centric protests on May 15 with the picketing of Singha Durbar as an initial phase. Starting from 9 a.m., protestors from 29 Madhesi and Janjati parties gathered in the Singh Durbar area, the center of the country's administration. This was followed by rallies with placards, banners and flags that began from various locations in Kathmandu. The protestors chanted slogans against the Government leadership and urged fulfillment of the 26-point demand they submitted to the Government. They emphasized the redrawing of provincial boundaries and amending of fsome provisions of the Constitution, among other things. A brief scuffle occurred after the protestors tried to cross into the restricted zone. Republica, May 16, 2016.


The South Asia Intelligence Review (SAIR) is a weekly service that brings you regular data, assessments and news briefs on terrorism, insurgencies and sub-conventional warfare, on counter-terrorism responses and policies, as well as on related economic, political, and social issues, in the South Asian region.

SAIR is a project of the Institute for Conflict Management and the South Asia Terrorism Portal.

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Editor
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