Ajaxpaul
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NEW DELHI: India is not too rattled by the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan's (TTP) threat to send its fighters to Kashmir and enforce Sharia law in the country, as there are no inputs with intelligence agencies regarding TTP's plans to deflect its attention from Afghanistan-Pakistan to the eastern border with India.
A senior intelligence official told TOI that the TTP was known to issue anti-India threats from time to time to win over hardline support in Pakistan, besides attracting recruits as well as funding. By naming Kashmir as its next hotspot, the TTP may also be trying to underline its relevance as against other Pakistan-based terror outfits such as Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Muhammad and Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, which have lately failed to sustain the momentum of violent attacks in the valley.
According to intelligence assessments, the TTP's threat to spread its influence to India may be a statement against India and Pakistan's decision to stay engaged. With elections in Pakistan around the corner, the TTP may also be trying to cater to anti-India, hardline elements there.
Senior TTP leader Wali-ur-Rehman had, in a video uploaded on January 6, said, "The practical struggle for a sharia system that we are carrying out in Pakistan, the same way we will continue it in Kashmir, and the same way we will implement the sharia system in India too."
The threat to enter Kashmir came at a time when violence levels have hit a low in the valley.
"Though infiltration is continuing, the militants coming in have reportedly been asked to lie low," an intelligence official said, adding that most of these militants were affiliated to outfits like LeT and JeM, who despite linkages with the TTP are not yet known to have offered their local network in India to implement the Taliban's hardline agenda.
However, foreign policy analyst Brahma Chellaney cautioned against a dismissive attitude towards TTP's threat. "With American forces planning to exit from Afghanistan in little over a year, there is a real possibility of the Taliban forces turning their attention to other theatres of conflict, including Kashmir. This will bring us under cumulative attack from both the radicalized state-sponsored outfits and elements outside state control," he said.
Senior intelligence officers, however, disagree. "Pakistan will keep the western border active to sustain US aid and arms supplies. Obviously, TTP is unlikely to disengage from the western front in the short or medium term," an official told TOI.
Security agencies not worried about Pakistani Taliban's threat to enter Kashmir - The Times of India
A senior intelligence official told TOI that the TTP was known to issue anti-India threats from time to time to win over hardline support in Pakistan, besides attracting recruits as well as funding. By naming Kashmir as its next hotspot, the TTP may also be trying to underline its relevance as against other Pakistan-based terror outfits such as Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Muhammad and Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, which have lately failed to sustain the momentum of violent attacks in the valley.
According to intelligence assessments, the TTP's threat to spread its influence to India may be a statement against India and Pakistan's decision to stay engaged. With elections in Pakistan around the corner, the TTP may also be trying to cater to anti-India, hardline elements there.
Senior TTP leader Wali-ur-Rehman had, in a video uploaded on January 6, said, "The practical struggle for a sharia system that we are carrying out in Pakistan, the same way we will continue it in Kashmir, and the same way we will implement the sharia system in India too."
The threat to enter Kashmir came at a time when violence levels have hit a low in the valley.
"Though infiltration is continuing, the militants coming in have reportedly been asked to lie low," an intelligence official said, adding that most of these militants were affiliated to outfits like LeT and JeM, who despite linkages with the TTP are not yet known to have offered their local network in India to implement the Taliban's hardline agenda.
However, foreign policy analyst Brahma Chellaney cautioned against a dismissive attitude towards TTP's threat. "With American forces planning to exit from Afghanistan in little over a year, there is a real possibility of the Taliban forces turning their attention to other theatres of conflict, including Kashmir. This will bring us under cumulative attack from both the radicalized state-sponsored outfits and elements outside state control," he said.
Senior intelligence officers, however, disagree. "Pakistan will keep the western border active to sustain US aid and arms supplies. Obviously, TTP is unlikely to disengage from the western front in the short or medium term," an official told TOI.
Security agencies not worried about Pakistani Taliban's threat to enter Kashmir - The Times of India
