Thiruvanathapuram: The Centre on Monday said no
specific security threat had been received to the Commonwealth
Games to be held in Delhi next month.
Acquisition of para gliders by Lashkar-e-Toiba had come to
the notice of Centre, but it did not cause any direct threat
to CWG, Union Home Secretary G K Pillai told reporters here.
Asserting that the Centre was not concerned by the LeT
acquiring para gliders, he said government would take all
necessary steps for foolproof security for the games.
On the standoff between BlackBerry and Union Government
over giving access of its message service to security
agencies, Pillai said the firm had made available some of its
features to the Centre. They have agreed to provide more, he
said adding, "the Centre has asked for company`s data services
considering national security."
"It is a must for monitoring some messages. But, that does
not mean that we are watching all messages and data," he
added.
Pillai, who reviewed the centrally-aided police
modernisation schemes during a meeting with DGP Jacob Punose
and other officials, said growth of religious fundamentalism
in Kerala had become become a matter of concern.
"Kerala is a state known for communal harmony and any
threat to it will have very adverse consequences," he said.
However, he said the state government was well aware of
the situation and was taking necessary steps to combat the
threat.
The Centre was closely watching the activities of Popular
Front of India (PFI), whose members were allegedly responsible
for chopping the hand of college lecturer T J Joseph, Pillai
said.
"Some elements in the outfit are with extremist ideas
though many others in the organisation were not aware of
this," he said.
On banning PFI, Pillai said the outfit had not come under
the `unlawful activities` parameters. At present there was no
move to ban the outfit, he added.
On the existence of Maoists in Kerala, he said naxals were
active in Waynad, the northern part of the state. However, he
said their activities were not confined to Waynad alone.
"We have information about setting up front organisations
by Maoists," Pillai said. The state government was aware of
this and was capable of dealing with the situation, he said.
On the release of three police personnel kidnapped by
Maoist in Bihar, he said the entire matter was handled by the
state government. The Centre primarily provided sharing of
intelligence inputs and other logistic support.
"The steps of the state government are supported by the
Centre," he added.
PTI
