Coimbatore blast: TN Guv slams delay in recommending NIA probe

Chennai, Oct 28 (IANS) Tamil Nadu Governor R.N. Ravi on Friday wondered why it took four days for the M.K. Stalin-led state government to recommend an NIA investigation into the October 23 Coimbatore car blast case.

Speaking at a programme in Coimbatore, Ravi, a former IPS officer, also questioned how the monitoring agencies failed to pick up on the blast even as the perpetrators of the crime were on the radar for long.

He also said that the car blast was an attempt to unleash a major terror act and this was proved after a huge quantity of raw materials required for making IEDs was seized.

The Governor said that these were ample evidence that the terrorists were about to strike in Coimbatore.

"We know that terrorists are enemies of everyone and friends of none and we know that terrorists do not work in isolation and are part of a larger network. What they were doing was part of a larger conspiracy. Coimbatore is a known place for harbouring terrorists for a long time. They have been trained and taken to Iraq, Syria and Afghanisthan," R.N. Ravi said.

Stating that India was on the cusp of development and moving forward, he said the adversaries of the country do not like the progress the country was making.

"These adversaries do not have the capacity to take on India upfront, hence they were resorting to tactics like terrorism," Ravi said, adding: "They are trying to create problems in the country and using terrorism as a tool to achieve their goals."

"It's a proxy war, the most sinister and secret way.... We need to be very alert."

The Tamil Nadu Governor also called upon the authorities not to "go soft" on terrorists, and take decisions at a faster pace.