Cops must develop intelligence net

Cops must develop intelligence net
Lessons In Counter-Terrorist Operations Need Of The Hour
The Times of India

Bangalore: The police are working overnight, but are still clueless about the IISc attack. Adding to their woes is that no terrorist outfit has so far claimed responsibility, unlike in cases up the North.

Except from releasing a sketch of the suspect, the police are unable to proceed further as leads are slow to come by. More importantly, the police force is inexperienced in counter-terrorist operations.

Unlike their counterparts in Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and even Hyderabad, the city police have virtually no first-hand knowledge of terrorist groups, who usually target J&K and Delhi. Chennai police have the experience of handling the LTTE while the Hyderabad police have been facing the brunt from Naxal groups.

A former police official with vast experience in Central Intelligence agencies felt that the Bangalore police have not developed a network with criminal/terrorist/underworld gangs. What is required is contacts at grassroots level.

R Ratnakar Rao, former Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) Special Secretary and Secretary, Security, GoI, said it was now important to pick a team of inspectors and sub-inspectors who have an investigative bent of mind and good field contacts to gather information and take the right leads forward to crack the case.

A team of two DCPs, five ACPs and 10 inspectors supervised by Joint Commissioner of Police Gopal B Hosur has since been formed. The core team has a task ahead of it, since it has to start afresh and go into an overdrive to collect the information.

Experts pointed out that the Karnataka Police are crippled since a couple of effective and experienced officers themselves are facing charges, and it has become difficult to pull them into the investigating teams.

Says former Director-General and Inspector-General of Police R Ramalingam, who has served as the Commissioner of Police as well, the first point is that such offences cannot be detected very soon. It will take sustained investigations. Bangalore as well as Karnataka police are not familiar with terrorist operations. Intelligence gathering will be the only way to prevent a terrorist attack, a point also echoed by IISc director, professor P Balaram.

Unless the police develop a network and exchange intelligence with other states, they may find it difficult to proceed in such cases. It is high time a beginning was made in this direction.