Al-Qaeda video puts State police on high alert

The announcement by Al-Qaeda to form an Indian branch of the terror group has put the State police on high alert.

The Karnataka police said that though the alert by the Central intelligence agencies was not specific, certain districts in the State had been asked to step up vigil in view of the previous terror incidents.

This is the second alert pertaining to the recruitment by a terror group in the country.Earlier, certain districts were asked to keep extra vigil after the reported recruitment drive by Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).  A senior police official said the recent report from Mumbai about four youths being allegedly recruited by the ISIS, was also being analysed.

“There is no specific instance of recruitment in the State so far. However, a general alert has been sent across to all districts. In the Maharashtra incident, the identity of the youths came to light only after they travelled outside the country. Both ISIS and Al-Qaeda are the latest modules and we are keeping tabs on them,” the official said.

The alert has also been issued to the district police to keep tabs on youths travelling to the Middle East. “So many youth travel to the Middle East every day. It is not an easy task. However, we are watching such developments. This is apart from other general instructions sent out to the districts,” the official said.

Sources said though the alert had been sent across the State, certain districts such as Kodagu, Dakshina Kannada, Gulbarga and Davanagere had  been asked to keep extra vigil in the wake of existence of terror modules in the past. And particularly on the banned Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI).

An official said the release of a video by Al-Qaeda could also be aimed at reaching out to the disaffected youth who have SIMI leanings. 

“The video specifically mentions that the presence of Al-Qaeda would be good news for Muslims in Assam, Gujarat, Jammu and Kashmir, besides Myanmar (Burma) and Bangladesh. This also hints at Al-Qaeda’s plans to reach out to states where SIMI still has a presence,” a source said adding that the SIMI still has presence in Gujarat, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.