Act of terror in Amritsar

The attack on the Nirankari Bhawan in Adliwala village, near Amritsar, has cost three innocent lives. It has again highlighted the failure of the police in the state and at the Centre to gather and provide actionable intelligence. Memory of the decade of terrorism and attacks on religious places is fresh in Punjab, and recent incidents prove, if any proof was needed, that vigilance must be eternal.

The unguarded target, a Sunday congregation, was attacked by two motorcycle riders, who apparently threw a grenade and escaped after that. This is the fact that is known. Beyond that, all is conjecture, although inevitably the ISI, Khalistani, extremist hands, are all being noticed ex post facto. The task before the administration is to calm the nerves of the people and to apprehend the perpetrators of the attack, and improve security at other public places that could be targeted. Capt Amarinder Singh and the administrative top brass have taken the preliminary steps.

Even as Punjab has largely been at peace, there has been a series of intermittent incidents over the past couple of years. As everyone knows, peace is always fragile in the state. A section of politicians, however, seem to have forgotten this hard lesson of the past decades. Opportunistic and inflammatory statements feed chaos. The police will take the time to find out more. Kite-flying with comments about who could have done this dastardly deed will further muddy the waters and vitiate the atmosphere in the state. It is time for the state police to rise to the occasion. The Punjab Police is riven with rift at the top. This would have had implications on its intelligence parsing abilities. The intelligence failure should not be compounded by a failure in policing and the investigation. The people of Punjab have lived in communal harmony even in the face of terrorist threats. They deserve to live without the shadow of terrorism constantly staining their lives.