Terrorists are still very much here, there and everywhere
Security agencies were found napping as terrorists first struck near Gujrat and then right inside Lahore. A more than a year long lull in terrorist activity in the capital city of Punjab had induced a false sense of security in the administration and law enforcing bodies of the province. This enabled the TTP to quietly refurbish its sleeping cells with fresh manpower and weapons. It is now in a position to strike at the targets of its choice. The establishment’s policy of allowing the banned outfits to work under new names has allowed them to revive old contacts and prepare new strategies to continue to play with the lives of innocent people. The tendency to look the other way as they raise funds in public has helped them collect enough money to keep them in the deadly business. As the militant networks with new brand names are allowed to hold public meetings, they are able to enlist fresh recruits.
Both incidents indicate that while the orders must have been sent by the higher TTP leadership, those executing them were local operatives. It is difficult for the outsiders to mix up and disappear among the population. In Lahore, it is inconceivable for anyone from outside the city to operate inside the heavily populated Ichhra with its narrow streets and meandering lanes. The terrorists must have had at their disposal safe houses in the city to get together and proceed for action. They must be having places where to store their weapons. The incidents once again confirm that over the decades an efficient police system with its assets of local informants has ceased to exist in Punjab where it once worked fairly efficiently. The appointment of blue-eyed boys in key positions under the present administration has taken a toll on the efficiency and morale of the police.
In both the incidents, terrorists have targeted members of the law enforcement agencies. In FATA, the Taliban first concentrated on killing the traditional tribal leadership before they were able to take on the army. In the settled districts they are zeroing in on the army and police. Once the law enforcement agencies are demoralised and reluctant to act, terrorists will be free to attack the unprotected population with impunity. The establishment has to abandon the policy of placating the terrorists if the country is to be saved. Unless all sections of the establishment are on the same page the terrorists will continue to wreak havoc. With the militant networks on the rampage, the country will not need a foreign army to destroy it.
