Wednesday's dastardly terror attack on the Delhi High Court resulted in a needless loss of life. The responsibility for this blast later claimed by the Harkat-ul-Jihadi, a group having bases in Bangladesh and Pakistan, brings to immediate attention one important factor: public places and sensitive areas need to be made ultra-secure. Absolutely no flexibility should be shown.
The irony that the act was executed while the Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is on a state visit to Bangladesh is not lost either.
The High Court blast was the 19th terror attack carried out in Delhi in the past 15 years. This shows that terror outfits are entering high-profile places with impunity and killing people without a second thought. The alarming lapse in intelligence — both human and technical — especially in high risk areas is also highlighted.
The authorities should have been more vigilant, especially months after the triple bomb strikes in Mumbai. With the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks just days away, terrorists will always try to make a symbolic point.
The government will now face intense scrutiny while trying to explain this failure. They had promised a radical overhaul of security measures but failed to implement them and in some cases merely abandoned them.
