A car explosion tore through the densely populated iconic Red Fort area of Delhi on 10 November last, killing at least 10 people and injuring more than 30, prompting the ruling BJP leaders to vow to bring “those responsible” to justice. The ripple effect from the blast was felt across India. Airports, railway stations, government buildings and heritage sites across the country were put on high alert.
Delhi, it bears recall, experienced several blasts in previous decades, in which public areas, such as bus depots and crowded markets, were targeted. Even armed miscreants once entered the premises of the Indian parliament, hoodwinking the security personnel, and sought to resort to violence and killing. About the current episode, PM Modi has pointed to a “conspiracy” while the Union defence minister has pledged to bring the culprits to justice. The police in Jammu and Kashmir suspect that a terror module — its tentacles are transnational and also spread across states — may have been responsible for the explosion. Whatever the conclusion of the investigation, some ominous signs seem to be emerging. Principal among these is that the malaise of such criminality, no matter what the verdict is in the Delhi bomb blast case, has not been eradicated.
This is what needs to be understood. When demonetization was announced in November 2016, PM Modi said, inter alia, that the measure would prohibit terrorist funding. He even went to the extent of saying, “If you find anything wrong with my intentions or my actions, hang me in public”. Now it is evident that neither terrorist activities have been curbed, nor has the PM offered himself for being hanged.
On 26 September 2016, terrorists allegedly backed by Pakistan, attacked an Indian Army camp in Uri, Kashmir. Ten days later, India reported that it had carried out “surgical military strikes” on terrorist training camps in Pakistan-controlled territory. Indian Military circles claimed cross-border strikes by select Special Forces troops on the basis of ‘credible intelligence of the presence of terrorists on specific dates at launchpads’ across the Line of Control. But no militant groups were found in any of the purported launchpads, debunking the claim about the existence of camps in the immediate vicinity. After three years, when a convoy of vehicles carrying Indian security personnel was attacked by a vehicle-borne suicide bomber at Lethapora in the Pulwama district of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, killing 40 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel in February 2019, the BJP government immediately turned gun against Pakistan, accusing it of promoting terrorist activity in India. And then on 26 February 2019, Indian army planes crossed the Line of Control and dropped bombs into Balakot, Pakistan. India claimed that it attacked a training camp of Jaish-e Mohammed, a terrorist group held responsible for the Pulwama strike and killed a large number of terrorists, reported to be between 300 and 350. However, High-resolution satellite images reviewed by Reuters show that a religious school run by Jaish-e Mohammad (JeM) in northeastern Pakistan appears to be still standing days after India claimed its warplanes had hit the group’s training camp. Also, quoting some Pakistani locals, a news media said that only some pine trees and a few crows were victims of Indian aerial strike. Earlier also in September 2016, an attack on an Indian army base in Uri created a similar situation when Delhi decided to respond with so-called “surgical strikes”. And just a few months back, precisely April 2025, some alleged terrorists who reportedly entered from Pakistan by illegally crossing the border, gunned down 28 persons, mostly tourists in Pahalgam, Kashmir. And within no time, India launched an aerial attack on Pakistan, according to what the BJP government said, to destroy terrorist centres located there. Pakistan also launched counterattacks. But then after 4 days, a ceasefire was agreed by both the sides. And on every occasion, the Indian government claimed to have thwarted any further activity of the terrorist groups. But fact is that terrorist attacks show no sign of being abated. So, the veracity of the claim of the Indian government about containing terrorism is under question.
Similarity Between Delhi Blast and Pulwama Attack
There appear to be similarities between the 2019 Pulwama terror attack, in which an explosive-laden car was used to cause a blast killing Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel, and the Monday blast in Delhi. in the Pulwama attack, the terrorists had used a Maruti Eeco car and in today’s blast, sources said, a Hyundai i20 hatchback has been under focus of investigation. But it is yet to be established whether the slow moving car, which caused the explosion, was carrying people in it or not, the sources said, adding that the blast occurred in the rear of the vehicle, possibly in the boot.
But then how could the cars stuffed with explosives evade the much-touted surveillance network of India? It is found that though the Indian security agencies could not prevent terrorist acts or planted violence beforehand, they manifest extraordinary efficiency in cracking the conspiracies with expediency and identify the culprits after the incidents. It is reported that one Dr Umar un-Nabi, a doctor at Al-Falah University in Faridabad, was the suicide bomber in Delhi. Three Muslim doctors were also arrested but later released in absence of evidence. But no such drastic action was taken against another suspect, Dr Priyanka Sharma, also from Kashmir. Rather, she was released quickly. But the Indian security forces spared no time in demolishing Dr Nabi’s house in Pulwama in Kashmir. The government said it has found out other incriminating evidence and places all pointing towards Muslim connections.
Stable is Locked After the Mare is Stolen
Notable is the fact that on every occasion, to speak in proverbial term, the stable is locked after the mare is stolen. That is what raises a question about the efficiency of the Indian security mechanism. No one can support any terrorist act which takes toll of innocent lives. But then, how is it that the terrorists have been continuing to operate unbridled even in the country’s capital city? Why cannot the Indian security agencies detect their presence and unravel their plans beforehand? Why are they so wise after the incidents? A common refrain of the Indian authorities is that foreign hands are trying to destabilize India. But then how could the foreign agents so conveniently strategize and operationalize their plans amidst a sharp-sighted security network? Are we then to conclude that foreign espionage agencies are more efficient than ours? Moreover, finger is pointed at neighboring Pakistan for pushing trained terrorists through border. It can well be that the Pakistani rulers are trying to plant terrorism in India. But then why can illegal intrusion of terrorists across the borders not be spotted despite existence of an array of intelligence wings, including military intelligence? Also, how could a detailed account of terrorist actions or movement, as well as locations of perpetrators of sabotaging activists be known after the incidents? After the Delhi blast, PM Modi said that no one who orchestrated the car explosion would be spared. But the government had been unusually cautious in casting blame after the attack with archrival Pakistan not mentioned. Perhaps, the latest hobnobbing of Pakistani rulers with US President Trump and the latter’s claim of having stopped the Operation Sindoor-led war have compelled the Indian dispensation from doing so.
Strange Coincidence
One strange coincidence is inexplicable. The terror-strikes or planted violence occur mostly on the eve of central or assembly elections. The Uri surgical strike was undertaken on the eve of assembly elections in Goa, UP, Uttarakhand and Manipur. During the electoral campaign, the BJP had carried out extensive propaganda about Uri surgical strike particularly in UP and Uttarakhand to politicize and electorally exploit the “ strike” on terror launch pads along the Line of Control in Pakistan, BJP leaders in Uttar Pradesh praised India’s “surgical strike” in several banners and hoardings. Also, the Uri incident was used in a subtle manner to incite anti-Pakistan (read camouflaged anti-Muslim) sentiment and polarize the voters along religious line. The BJP won in all four assembly elections. In 2019, parliamentary elections were held in May three months after the Balakot strike following Pulwama killing. Once again, a national jingoism and anti-Pakistan hype were created, and the BJP won second term at the Centre. ‘Operation Sindoor’ was launched in May 2025 when assembly election in Bihar was on the anvil. The Delhi blast occurred before second phase of Bihar election and ahead of polls in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry. The big question that inevitably crops up—why before elections terrorist attacks occur following BJP victories?
In any case, such repeated incidents of terrorist violence which takes a heavy toll on people’s life and property, often creates mistrust among various communities because of one-sided propaganda from the ruling quarters and surcharge the air with tension cannot be tolerated. The budgets allocated for some of the security agencies are Intelligence Bureau (IB): Rs 3,893.35 crore. National Intelligence Grid (NATGRID): Rs158.23 crore. Security Related Expenditure (SRE): Rs 4,876.34 crore NIA: Rs. 394.66 Crore Research and Analysis Wing: Rs 12,000 crore (estimated) Intelligence Bureau (IB): Rs 3,893.35 crore.
All these expenditures are met from Public Exchequer. So, the agencies are accountable to the citizens of the country and owe an explanation why prior information about possible terrorist violence remains wanting.
