Dhaka attack: ISIS modules publishing propaganda material in Bengali

The Asian Age Staff  | Paranjoy Guha Thakurta

World, Others

The Ministry of Home Affairs has directed states bordering Bangladesh to take steps to prevent infiltration of extremists.

Security agencies have also started verifying the status of jihadi elements arrested by security forces in West Bengal and Assam

The Ministry of Home Affairs has directed states bordering Bangladesh to take steps to prevent infiltration of extremists.

In what could be a very worrying development for the security agencies in India, Islamic State (IS) modules are publishing propaganda material in Bengali on a large scale in Bangladesh.

Saying that earlier, IS has been publishing its propaganda materials in Arabic, English, French, German and Turkish languages, authoritative security sources told this newspaper that of late they have noticed IS propaganda materials published in Bengali.

Security sources said that the ISIS messages are in a dialect that can be read and understood in West Bengal and Northeastern states of India. An ISIS video mentioning Assam has also been discovered.

Clarifying that India is yet to assess the threat perception arising out of Dhaka attack, security sources however said that the Ministry of Home Affairs has directed states bordering Bangladesh to take some specific steps to check possible attempts by radical elements to cross over to India.

Pointing out that there was no reason to panic, they said that the immediate concern for India is to stop inflow of radical elements from Bangladesh in the aftermath of the Dhaka attack.

Bangladesh has already started mounting pressure on radical groups responsible for recent killings, so there is a possibility of these extremists trying to cross over to India to escape the onslaught of security forces in that country.

In view of this, Border Security Force (BSF) jawans have also been directed to intensify patrolling along the International Border.

Security agencies have also started verifying the status of jihadi elements arrested by security forces in West Bengal and Assam. Sources said that all necessary steps have been taken to check infiltration by ISIS into India. Security agencies have also been asked to keep a check on those who have been released on bail after being accused of terror activities.

Read more...