Terrorists aim to prevent normalisation of Indo-Pak ties: PM

Bagdogra, May 17 (UNI) Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said terrorist attacks like the recent blasts in Jaipur, which claimed more than 60 lives, were often aimed at preventing the normalisation of relations between India and Pakistan and said such nefarious designs should be defeated.

"There is no doubt that terrorist elements have many objectives," he said at a press conference at the airport here on his way back to Delhi from a two-ay visit to Bhutan.

"One is to disturb the atmosphere of communal harmony in our country, to create communal disturbances and also to prevent the normalisation of relations between India and Pakistan. We have to be mindful of these nefarious designs and adopt strategies to defeat them," he said.

He was replying to a question about whether the Jaipur blasts had vitiated the atmosphere ahead of the talks at the Foreign Secretaries' and Foreign Ministers' levels to be held between India and Pakistan in Islamabad next week.

Dr Singh also said the time had come to examine the need for a federal agency to investigate terrorist attacks and other crimes with inter-state ramifications.

The Prime Minister declined to talk about the progress in the investigations into the Jaipur blasts, saying such matters were best left to the investigating agencies.

"We will look at all possibilities and come to a decisive conclusion. In the light of that conclusion, whatever steps are necessary will be taken," he said.

In this context, he said the time had come to recognise the fact that there were some crimes of a federal nature which could best be investigated by a specialised federal agency.

Such an agency could be tasked with the responsibility of investigating all crimes of an inter-state nature, such as terrorism, white collar crimes, human trafficking and smuggling of narcotics.

"There is a case for such an agency and it has been discussed several times in the Inter-State Council, but there has been reluctance on the part of some states to surrender their powers," he said.

At the same time, he said there was a need to upgrade security, investigative and intelligence agencies and equip them with more facilities so that they could discharge their duties better.

Dr Singh, however, did not...picking up from first para of DR69, PM-LEAD JAIPUR BLASTS TWO LAST BAGDOGRA.

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