The Elusive Terror Mastermind of India’s Mujahideen: A Profile of Ahmed Siddibaba a.k.a Yasin Bhatkal

Ahmed Siddibaba, also known as Yasin Bhatkal, notorious for his various aliases such as ‘Saharukh Khan’, ‘Sivanand’, and ‘Dr. Imran’, is believed to be in charge of the IM terror group since the top leaders of the homegrown terror group have fled to Pakistan and to the Gulf region following countrywide crackdowns.

Homegrown Terrorism in India: A Persistent Threat

While India has been witnessing terrorism ever since independence, the vicious influence and reach of contemporary terrorism is unique and cleaves out potent problems for India. Many of the terrorist attacks against cities in India like German Bakery blast in Pune (Maharashtra) on February 13, 2010 had been conceptualized and planed by Indian Muslims who sought to attack their own country.

R. BHANU KRISHNA KIRAN

Deba R Mohanty Quoted in Times of India Report on 'banning foreign defence contractors'

 "Banning foreign defence contractors is a loss for both country and firms: Experts": Times of India, August 09, 2012

"This is a lose-lose situation for both the companies banned from bidding contracts and the country, which is heavily dependent on foreign countries for purchasing arms and defence technologies," said New Delhi-based Deba Ranjan Mohanty, who is currently the vice-president of Society for the Study of Peace and Conflict.

Special Report: Interrogating Non-Alignment 2.0

Non-alignment is back through a recent Report prepared and published by the Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi, in February 2012. Reminiscent of a movie sequel, it is refreshed, repackaged, updated and delivered in a 2.0 form, titled “Non-Alignment 2.0: A Foreign and Strategic Policy for India in the Twenty First Century”. And like most movie sequels today, it also runs on an altogether new script with only an imaginary connection to the first. Why stick to the name then?

DEBA R MOHANTY & VINEET THAKUR*

TM: A Challenge for Pakistan: Saudi Arabia's New Counterterrorism Cooperation with India

July 15, 2012

At a time when questions are being raised about Saudi Arabia’s tacit support for the global Salafist movement, recent developments have displayed the Kingdom’s new-found seriousness in fighting terrorism, especially that emanating from South Asia. These developments include the deportation of a top Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) operative and the detention of a wanted Indian Mujahideen (IM) suspect.

India’s War on Terrorism and International Cooperation

The fortitude of cooperation and practical attitude in the investigation of transnational terrorist crimes is indispensable. Indian investigating agencies have been undergoing with many problems in trail of the terrorist related cases in investigations and checks in other countries. Consequently, cooperation between law enforcing authorities of different countries is a vital tool for fighting threats to security. It requires sustained cross border cooperation, coherent regional cooperation and specific global cooperation.

R. BHANU KRISHNA KIRAN

India: Kashmir: On the Way Back?

December 10, 2010

India: Kashmir: On the Way Back? (Co-authored with Athar Parvaiz)

Kashmir/New Delhi | In May of this year, four Kashmiri candidates passed India’s prestigious civil service examination. But what sparked celebration all across the region was the rare feat achieved by one of them, Shah Faisal, who topped the examination with the best score. This was the first time that as many as four Kashmiri youth had qualified for India’s civil service – and that one of them excelled above all others was the icing on the cake.

http://chalkboard.tol.org/india-kashmir-on-the-way-back

India and Pakistan’s Nuclear Doctrines: A Comparative Analysis

In 1974, India conducted a nuclear test that it termed as a ‘peaceful nuclear explosion’. However, in 1998, India conducted a full scale nuclear test and consequently claimed to attain nuclear capability. It was soon followed by its neighbor, Pakistan, also opting for the same nuclear route. A year later, the draft on nuclear doctrine was presented in August 1999 to the Indian Prime Minister. Subsequently the Cabinet released it for public debate by the National Security Advisory Board.

MOHAMMED BADRUL ALAM

The Mastermind of Mayhem in Mumbai: A Profile of Lashkar-e-Taiba’s Zaki-ur-Rahman Lakhvi

February 01, 2012

Outside the Indian subcontinent not much was known about the most prolific militant commander of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Zaki-ur Rahman Lakhvi, until the United States Treasury announced on May 27, 2008 that they had froze the assets of four of the top LeT leaders including Lakhvi. [1] Exactly six months later, Lakhvi’s name entered into terror infamy. With his jihadi network, he had masterminded the Mumbai attacks in November 2008, which sent ripples across the world. 

India’s Art of Balancing in West Asia

The Indian foreign minister SM Krishna’s four nation visit to Israel, Jordan, Palestine and the UAE from January 8 to 11, 2012 has been seen as a beginning of “new approach ” in India’s foreign policy towards West Asia in general and the Arab Gulf region in particular. India has unequivocally accepted the paradigm that the relations with both Palestine as well as Israel are equally significant to its core national interests. Israel is important to India from defence, security and technology point of view, while Palestine is significant for humanitarian, ideological and strategic reasons.

ZAKIR HUSSAIN