New Delhi, March 24 – Security agencies are closely monitoring online chatter by terror operatives and their sympathizers as the states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala prepare for elections.
Intelligence reports suggest that sympathizers of the banned Popular Front of India (PFI) and those linked to the Islamic State are planning to disrupt the elections.
The agencies say that sympathizers and members of both the PFI and the Islamic State are working closely to stage a strike aimed at disrupting the elections.
However, the agencies warn that the biggest threat for these southern states is the disinformation campaign that these groups are planning to conduct.
Disinformation campaigns are aimed at creating communal tensions. If communal harmony is disturbed, it can be used as a perfect tool for radicalization and recruitment.
The Islamic State has focused extensively on the southern states and is gaining traction in this part of the country.
However, its activities have largely been online, with the main aim of radicalizing young people in Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
The terror group will take advantage of the fact that the security apparatus will be busy ensuring that the elections are conducted smoothly.
The current focus of these terror groups is on Kerala and Tamil Nadu, and once the elections are over, they will target the remaining states in South India.
An official said that radicalization in South India witnessed a massive surge when Wahhabi preachers visited in large numbers. This set the tone, after which groups like the PFI, the Islamic State, and Al-Qaeda were able to establish a foothold.
The official added that these groups have treated South India as their radicalization laboratory for a long time. The danger in South India is that the radicalization process for these terror groups has been relatively easier in Tamil Nadu and Kerala, as pointed out by the official.
Another official said that prior to the announcement of the election dates, these groups were already planning attacks and engaging in disinformation campaigns.
Furthermore, the world today is a fragile place due to so many conflicts, and this is being exploited, the official added.
After the war in Iran broke out, the Union Home Ministry issued an advisory warning against possible radicalization attempts. An Intelligence Bureau official said that when there is conflict in the Gulf, it is the Southern states that become more vulnerable to radicalization.
While the spread of Wahhabism is one reason for this, another is that there is a large population from Kerala who are in the Gulf.
In addition to the existing threats from the Islamic State and the PFI, the agencies are also closely monitoring another group – the Hizb-ut-Tahrir (HuT). The HuT, which has been banned by the Indian government under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), has opened several fake accounts on social media platforms aimed at large-scale radicalization in South India.
The agencies are closely monitoring the content that the HuT has been circulating online. An official said that its activities have increased in the wake of the upcoming elections.
Some of the content it circulates includes the creation of hit squads in South India and also the need to carry out lone wolf attacks. With these fresh inputs coming in ahead of the elections, the agencies are also revisiting the investigation that was conducted following the arrest of Faizul Rehman, the Emir of the HuT, in Tamil Nadu.
He had told his interrogators that the HuT wants to set up several recruitment modules in South India. He also said that they planned to incite the youth and create communal tensions in the region.
An Intelligence Bureau official said that all the terror groups operating in South India are currently focusing mainly on inciting communal violence. They want to disrupt the electoral process and then use the violence as a tool for radicalization and recruitment.
Elections are due in Assam, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, West Bengal, Assam and Puducherry. In Kerala, Assam and Puducherry elections will be held on April 9. West Bengal will vote on April 23 and 29 in two phases. Elections in Tamil Nadu will be held in a single phase on April 23. Counting will take place across all four states and Puducherry (UT) on May 4.