The state government claims that a prison exclusively for terrorists is needed as “sleeper cells” were beginning to mushroom and solidify whenever other criminals were coming into contact with terrorists incarcerated in ordinary jails.
The minister said 50 acres of land had been allocated for the purpose near the state capital, and a token amount of Rs 1 crore had been kept aside for this. He went on to add: “We will ensure that the project, expected to cost a total of Rs 20 crores and accommodate 600 prisoners, is completed within one year.”
Mr Shah drew attention to the fact that in over eight years of the Bharatiya Janata Party running the state government, only one major terrorist incident — the Ahmedabad serial blasts — had taken place in Gujarat, for which he said all the credit should go to Mr Narendra Modi.
“This has largely been because of the strong zero tolerance policy of the present chief minister. In the one serial blast that did take place, the administration moved with speed, putting the perpetrators behind bars and ensuring a speedy trial,” he noted.
Speaking in the state Assembly, Congress leader Arjun Modhvadia tried to bring out the contradictions in the government’s claim, and wondered if there had been just one incident in eight years, what was the need to construct a prison to exclusively house 600 terrorists.
Defending the decision, the minister said a separate prison for terrorists was essential because their mixing with other criminals aided in creation of sleeper cells.
An isolated facility was therefore essential, Mr Modhvadia said.
Deepal Trivedi