Minorities feeling a 'bit uneasy': Ex-Mumbai police chief

MUMBAI: Former Mumbai Police commissioner MN Singh on Friday said minorities in the country are feeling a "bit uneasy" and this issue needs to be addressed.

He said the current narrative on cow slaughter ban should change and the focus should be on improving internal security.

The retired IPS officer was speaking on the topic, 'How Safe is Mumbai?', at a function, organised by think tank Observer Research Foundation.

"The minorities in the country are a bit uneasy and it needs to be addressed. The (current) national narrative, the debate is creating some anxiety. It has to be changed," he said.

"The issue of Babri Masjid and Ram Mandir has to be solved amicably," Singh said.

"This Babri Masjid issue has to be amicably settled between the two communities. It is not an easy solution. Any decision coming from the top or court will be half-accepted. It (the issue) will never end," said the former top cop.

"There are some private groups that are talking sensible things, going and meeting so many Muslim groups. I think that is what should be encouraged," he said.

There have been some 12 terror attacks in Mumbai, of which three have been very deadly. The first was in March 1993 (serial bomb blasts), but security measures improved only after the November 2008 carnage, he said.

V Balendran, a former special secretary in the central government, said, "It is sad our police and anti-terror squads had no night vision cameras; hence the terror attack continued for three days in Hotel Taj (during 26/11). The situation has slightly improved since then."