New Delhi, September 7
Making separate statements in both Houses of Parliament, Union Home Minister P Chidambaram today said Delhi was a target of terrorist groups and termed the blast as that of “high intensity” while maintaining that the objective of terrorist groups was to “strike fear and to destabilise the country”.

Appealing to the House and to the people of the country, he said: “We must not show any vacillation. We shall never be intimidated by terrorist groups.” He expressed the determination “to track down the perpetrators of this horrific crime and bring them to justice.”

When Parliament is in session and during certain other times of the year, Delhi is placed on a high alert. Intelligence agencies constantly share intelligence inputs with the Delhi Police. “Intelligence pertaining to threats emanating from certain groups was shared with the Delhi Police in July 2011,” the Home Minister stated.

Sources in the security set-up later admitted that the input given to the Delhi Police was not specific for the Delhi High Court or any other court in the Capital. In July, there was a hint of a threat and some precautions were taken.

In the two Houses, the Home Minister said in the last few years several measures had been taken to strengthen the Delhi Police. “Despite the Delhi Police remaining on a high alert, the tragic incident occurred today,” he added.

The government, he asserted, unequivocally condemned the terrorist attack. 

New Delhi, September 7
Minutes after political leaders in both Houses of Parliament on Wednesday condemned in one voice the terror attack outside the Delhi High Court and spoke of the need to unitedly fight terror, politics took over and the blame game started.

The Union Home Minister unwittingly contributed to it by stating that ‘intelligence’ was shared with Delhi Police, implying thereby that the Union Home Ministry had no further responsibility for the ‘intelligence failure’. There was widespread indignation as Delhi Police reports to him and is directly under the Union Home Ministry.

There was resentment at the government’s failure to install CCTV cameras at the gates of the High Court even four months after a similar but abortive terror attack was carried out at the same place. When AICC General Secretary and MP Rahul Gandhi visited the RML Hospital in the afternoon, he was heckled by angry relatives of the victims.

As the news about the e-mail from HuJI demanding that Parliament attack accused on the death row, Md Afzal, be let off spread, anger mounted with lawyers questioning why the government has not been able to decide on his mercy petition even six years after he was convicted.

In Parliament, cutting across party lines leaders of all political parties had expressed their determination to unitedly fight terror and not to raise any divisive issues or to indulge in a blame-game against one another. But once outside, BJP president Nitin Gadkari took the lead in attacking the Government and Arun Jaitley added meat to it.

In the Lok Sabha, NDA working chairman LK Advani noted that the blast occurred three days before the 10th anniversary of 9/11 terror attacks in the US and wondered if there was any connection. “It is significant that the attack happened near Parliament. We are saddened that the capital of India has been attacked again.” But soon BJP president Nitin Gadkari rushed to Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital and severely criticised the government for its inability to curb terror attacks and endangering the lives of the common citizens. Jaitley on way to Delhi High Court also changed his tone and tenor and reminded that, “This is the sixth in a series of blasts and the government is clueless.”

SC to step up security