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Subject: Law and Justice in a Globalizing World

LL.M Batch 2018-2019

A Project Report

FORMS OF TERRORISM :
RELIGIOUS AND POLITICAL

Submitted by

Ashish Rajputana (A011)

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FORMS OF TERRORISM: POLITICAL AND

RELIGIOUS

INDEX

SR. NO. CHAPTERS PAGE NO.

1 INTRODUCTION AND HYPOTHESIS 3
2 LITERATURE REVIEW 9
3 PRESENT SCENARIO 14
4 LEGAL ANALYSIS 19
5 ROLE OF JUDICIARY 22
6 CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS 30
7 WAY FORWARD 32
BIBLIOGRAPHY 33
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INTRODUCTION

Terrorism is, in the broadest sense, the use of intentionally indiscriminate violence as a means
to create terror among masses of people; or fear to achieve a financial, political, religious or
ideological aim. It is used in this regard primarily to refer to violence against peacetime targets
or in war against non-combatants. The terms "terrorist" and "terrorism" originated during
the French Revolution of the late 18th century but gained mainstream popularity during the U.S.
presidency of Ronald Reagan (1981–89) after the 1983 Beirut barracks bombings and again
after the 2001 September 11 attacks and the 2002 Bali bombings and most recently the terrorist
attacks in Mumbai on 26/11/2008.

Initially i.e. in the 18th and 19th century the word terrorism was commonly used to describe
persons who would revolt against the state or the ones who possessed ideologies which were not
in consonance with those of the common ideologies of the state or that of the church. Any act of
revolt or revolution was termed as terrorism. At the end of the 19th century, Russia, Europe and
the United States were confronted to a new radical movement which engaged in violent and
illegal acts. This movement was first created in Tsarist Russia, where young intellectuals,
sometimes staunch positivists, began to engage in a violent struggle against the Czar by
advocating assassinations and bombings. Similar acts of revolts during the French Revolution
and against the French Monarchy were also termed as Terrorism. However, in recent times the
meaning of the word has made many significant changes. With the passing time, the different
forms of terrorist attacks are taking place throughout the world and the word terrorism in todays
world includes religious terrorism, political terrorism, non- state terrorism, terrorism sponsored
by various state as well as non-state bodies and other several acts which loosely fall under the
definition of the word terrorism.

Simply put, the persons who are agitated and frustrated with any ideology, institution or the
state and using violence to revolt against the same is known as terrorism. It has been commonly
observed that the persons who are themselves involved in terrorism, they fail to realize that they
are doing something which is not only morally wrong but is also against the whole of humanity.
Those labeled as "terrorists" rarely identify themselves as such, and typically use other terms or
terms specific to their situation, such as separatist, freedom fighter, liberator
, revolutionary, vigilante, militant, paramilitary, guerrilla, rebel, patriot, or any similar-meaning
word in other languages and cultures. Jihadi, Mujaheddin, and Fedayeen are similar Arabic
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words that have entered the English lexicon. It is common for both parties in a conflict to
describe each other as terrorists.

As mentioned hereinabove, the word terrorism can be classified further into various types and
forms and some of them are discussed herein below:

State Terrorism
State terrorism is the systematic use of terror by a government in order to control its population.
Not to be confused with state sponsored terrorism, where states sponsor terrorist groups, state
terrorism is entirely carried out by the group holding power in a country and not a non-
governmental organization. It is the original form of terrorism. The 1793 French Revolution and
the thousands of executions that resulted are often cited as the first instance of state terrorism,
though rulers have plausibly been using it for centuries to control their subjects. State
terrorists can use force or the threat of force, without declaring war, to terrorize citizens and
achieve a political goal. Germany under Nazi rule has been described in this way. It has also
been argued that states participate in international terrorism, often by proxy. The United States
considers Iran the most prolific sponsor of terrorism because Iran arms groups, such as
Hizballah, that help carry out its foreign policy objectives. The United States has also been
called a terrorist, for example through its covert sponsorship of Nicaraguan Contras in the
1980s. The aforementioned French Revolution is the most prominent example, however state
terrorism is wide spread. Just about every dictator in history has arguably utilized state terrorism
as a way of controlling his or her populations. For more contemporary examples one could look
to the use of violence by Saddam Hussein against the Kurds or even the suppression of
democratic protestors in Syria.

Religious Terrorism

Terrorism can be motivated by religious ideologies and grievances. Religious terrorism is

particularly dangerous due to the fanaticism of those who practice it and their willingness to
sacrifice themselves for the cause. Religious terrorists are more likely to use “all in” tactics such
as suicide bombings. This is made possible by religious teachings used to justify and even
encourage this kind of self-sacrifice. Al-Qaeda is perhaps the most prominent example of a
group that can be characterized as religious terrorists. As well religious terrorism has a long
history from Catholic-Protestant violence in Ireland to Muslim-Hindu tensions in Pakistan and
India. Religious terrorism is majorly influenced by giving hate speeches and brainwashing the
minds of the followers and disciples and portraying before them an image that they are wronged
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by other religions or by the society at large and that some drastic steps are required to be taken
by them in order to ensure that their brethren of the same religion would not have to face all
struggles.

a. Buddhism and Terrorism

Buddhism is a religion or approach to an enlightened life based on the teachings of the
Buddha Siddhartha Gautama 25 centuries ago in northern India. The edict not to kill or
inflict pain on others is integral to Buddhist thought. Periodically, however, Buddist
monks have encouraged violence or initiated it. The primary example in the 20th and
21st century is in Sri Lanka, where Sinhala Buddhist groups have committed and
encouraged violence against local Christians and Tamils. The leader of Aum Shinrikyo,
a Japanese cult that committed a lethal sarin gas attack in the mid-1990s, drew on
Buddhist as well as Hindu ideas to justify his beliefs.
b. Christianity and Terrorism
Christianity is a monotheistic religion centered on the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth,
whose resurrection, as understood by Christians, provided salvation for all mankind.
Christianity's teachings, like those of other religions, contain messages of love and
peace, and those that can be used to justify violence. The 15th-century Spanish
inquisition is sometimes considered an early form of state terrorism. These Church-
sanctioned tribunals aimed to root out Jews and Muslims who had not converted to
Catholicism, often through severe torture.
c. Hinduism and Terrorism
Hinduism, the world's third largest religion after Christianity and Islam, and the oldest,
takes many forms in practice among its adherents. Hinduism valorizes non-violence as a
virtue, but advocates war when it is necessary in the face of injustice. A fellow Hindu
assassinated Mahatma Gandhi, whose non-violent resistance helped bring about Indian
independence, in 1948. Violence between Hindus and Muslims in India has been
endemic since then. However, the role of nationalism is inextricable from Hindu
violence in this context. The Godra riots and mass killings in Gujarat, the mass killings
of Muslims during the time of Partition of India and Pakistan are all the cases of
terrorism associated with Hinduism.
d. Islam and Terrorism
Adherents of Islam describe themselves as believing in the same Abrahamic God as
Jews and Christians, whose instructions to humankind were perfected when delivered to
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the last prophet, Muhammad. Like those of Judaisim and Christianity, Islam's texts offer
both peaceful and warring messages. Many consider the 11th-century "hashishiyin," to
be Islam's first terrorists. These members of a Shiite sect assassinated their Saljuq
enemies. In the late 20th century, groups motivated by religious and nationalist goals
committed attacks, such as the assassination of Egyptian president Anwar Sadat, and
suicide bombings in Israel. In the early 21st century, al-Qaeda "internationalized" jihad
to attack targets in Europe and the United States, Syria, Africa, Afghanistan. In the
todays world, there are countless islam-ist terrorist organizations carrying out mass acts
of violence throughout the world.
Bioterrorism
Bioterrorism refers to the intentional release of toxic biological agents to harm and terrorize
civilians, in the name of a political or other cause. The U.S. Center for Disease Control has
classified the viruses, bacteria, and toxins that could be used in an attack. Category A Biological
Diseases are those most likely to do the most damage. They include:

 Anthrax (Bacillus anthracis)

 Botulism (Clostridium botulinum toxin)
 The Plague (Yersinia pestis)
 Smallpox (Variola major)
 Tularemia (Francisella tularensis)
 Hemorrahagic fever, due to Ebola Virus or Marburg Virus

Cyberterrorism
Cyberterrorists use information technology to attack civilians and draw attention to their cause.
This may mean that they use information technology, such as computer systems or
telecommunications, as a tool to orchestrate a traditional attack. More often, cyberterrorism
refers to an attack on information technology itself in a way that would radically disrupt
networked services. For example, cyber terrorists could disable networked emergency systems
or hack into networks housing critical financial information. There is wide disagreement over
the extent of the existing threat by cyber terrorists.

Ecoterrorism
Ecoterrorism is a recently coined term describing violence in the interests of environmentalism.
In general, environmental extremists sabotage property to inflict economic damage on industries
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or factors they see as harming animals or the natural environment. These have included fur
companies, logging companies, and animal research laboratories, for example.

Nuclear Terrorism
Nuclear terrorism refers to a number of different ways nuclear materials might be exploited as a
terrorist tactic. These include attacking nuclear facilities, purchasing nuclear weapons, or
building nuclear weapons or otherwise finding ways to disperse radioactive materials.

Narcoterrorism
Narcoterrorism has had several meanings since its coining in 1983. It once denoted violence
used by drug traffickers to influence governments or prevent government efforts to stop the drug
trade. In the last several years, narcoterrorism has been used to indicate situations in which
terrorist groups use drug trafficking to fund their other operations. The cartels in Mexico have
carried out beheadings, mass burials, and other severe acts of violence. Many times this violence
is carried out to intimidate populations into not cooperating with authorities. Pablo Escobar also
enacted the assassinations of Colombian politicians during the height of his power in order to
intimidate the government into not interfering with his drug trafficking activity.

Right Wing Terrorism

This type of terrorism aims to combat liberal governments and preserve traditional social orders.
Right Wing terrorism is commonly characterized by militias and gangs; many times these
groups are racially motivated and aim to marginalize minorities within a state. Modern right
wing terrorist groups include the Klu Klux Klan and Neo-Fascists. Many such groups are
present not only in the U.S. but also in Germany, Russia, and others.

Left Wing Terrorism

These groups seek to overthrow capitalist democracies and establish socialist or communist
governments in their place. They want to attack the established system in order to do away with
class distinction. While these groups still exist they are not as prominent as they were during the
Cold War. The Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party-Front in Turkey, Revolutionary
Organization 17 November in Greece, and The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Columbia
(FARC) are all current examples of left wing terrorist groups.
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Pathological Terrorism

This describes the use of terrorism by individuals who utilize such strategies for the sheer joy of
terrorizing others. Pathological terrorists often operate alone rather in groups like the others on
this list and often are not true ‘terrorists’ as they lack any well-defined motive. Pathological
terrorism is most commonly seen in school shootings and serial killing scenarios. The shootings
at Columbine High School and of Congresswoman Gabby Giffords all serve as examples of
pathological terrorism since those who carried them out sought to use violence to terrorize for
their own pleasure.

Issue Oriented Terrorism

This type of terrorism is carried out for the purpose of advancing a specific issue. Commonly
these issues are social in nature or deal with the environment. Here this definition is used to
include environmental terrorism. The bombings of abortion clinics and the assault of whaling
ships are the best examples of issue-oriented terrorism. Perhaps the best documented example of
an eco-terror group is the Environmental Liberation Front (ELF) due to their attacks on ski
resorts and logging operations.

HYPOTHESIS

1. there is no need to classify terrorism into different branches or make specific laws in
respect of those forms/ branches of terrorism.

2. Religious and political terrorism are two different and very distinguished types of
terrorism without any nexus to each other.
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LITERATURE REVIEW

Review-1

Heather S. Greg : Perspective on terrorism, Terrorism Research Initiative.; University of

Massachusetts at Lowell, published by Terrorism Research Initiative, Center for
Terrorism and Security Studies, 2007, Volume 8, No.2 (2014), ISSN : 2334-3745 (online),
OCLC No. : 244204101

Review:

It’s a beautiful article written by Heather S. Greg. The author has not only provided
classification of the different forms of terrorism but has very vividly and in detail explained how
one is different from the other and also noted different characteristics of each of them. The
author believes that Religious terrorism is typically characterised as acts of unrestrained,
irrational and indiscriminant violence, thus offering few if any policy options for
counterterrorism measures. This assumption about religious terrorism stems from two
challenges in the literature: disproportionate attention to apocalyptic terrorism, and a lack of
distinction between religious terrorism and its secular counterpart.

Therefore, vide the present article the author aims to do four things: define and differentiate
religiously motivated terrorism from traditional terrorism; investigate three goals of religious
terrorism (fomenting the apocalypse, creating a religious government, and establishing a
religiously pure state); consider the role of leadership and target selection of religious terrorists;
and, finally, suggest a range of counterterrorism strategies based on these observations.

The author has very beautiful envisaged that often when it comes to religious terrorism,
researchers tend to focus on one particular motivation—apocalyptic, millennial, or messianic
terrorism, in which groups use violence to hasten the end of times and usher in an anticipated
new world and fail to recognize that religious terrorists, however, have other goals, some of
which are earthly in their aims; these goals are often categorised as political and not religious.
The author has relied on the definition provided by Bruce Hoffman and defined terrorism as a)
the use or threat of violence; b) the targeting of civilians, property, or government; c) the intent
of creating fear aimed at altering the status quo; and d) a group activity.

This definition stresses that terrorism, first and foremost, is a tactic. As such, non-state and state
actors can employ terrorist tactics. This article, however, will focus specifically on non-state
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actors. Second, this definition stresses the corporate nature of terrorists and their tactical use of
violence with the goal of changing the existing political, social, military, or religious order. To
be sure, individuals or “lone wolves” can employ terrorist tactics to achieve similar goals, but
this article will concentrate on groups that use terrorism to achieve a stated goal. Finally, this
definition is particularly useful for exploring religiously motivated terrorism because it
considers goals that may not be strictly political, such as changing the social and religious order
of a state or region. As will be described, religious groups that use terrorism have political goals,
but they also have social and religious goals that are distinct from political objectives.

On the other hand, the author has divided traditional terrorism into three sub-categories: left,
right and ethnic-separatist. The author has then ventured further and explained the meaning of
each of those stating that terrorism of the left refers primarily to Anarchist, Marxist and socialist
oriented ideologies. This type of terrorism was most active in the 20th century, particularly in
Western and Eastern Europe, Latin America and, to a lesser extent, the Middle East. Anarchist
groups were most popular in Europe around the turn of the 20th century, particularly in Russia,
where movements emerged with the aim of destroying the monarchy and the state.

Right winged terrorism is explained as groups with racist, fascist, or nationalistic motives and
goals. This type of terrorism was strong between the World Wars and reasserted itself beginning
in the 1980’s and continues to the present.

Ethnic- separatist terrorism is explained as groups that use terrorism to strive for autonomy or
independence from a state or military force. Examples of ethnic-separatist terrorists include
groups seeking independence from an occupying force, such as the Jewish Irgun in Palestine
under the British Mandate, the PLO under Israeli occupation, and the IRA under British
occupation. Another example within this subset is groups that seek separation from an existing
state such as the ETA in the Basque province of Spain. The author has observed that the ethnic-
separatist terrorism is often confused with the religious terrorism but the same is different.

What the author has tried to convey vide this article is that it frequently happens that under the
garb of the so called religious terrorism, a lot of states and/or influential persons are trying to
obtain certain political gains and until and unless a proper and defined prosecution mechanism
has been set up for different forms of terrorism, till that times there would be a lot more
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religious terrorist attacks that would be taking place but in reality it would be much more than
just a religious agitation or brain wash.

In concluding the review, I say that it is a very well written piece which provides in depth
knowledge about the forms of terrorism, their objectives, their development, a brief history and
what measures are necessary in order to understand and bifurcate between them so as to come
up with an effective counter terrorism solution.

Review-2

Christopher Lee Bollyn :The War on Terror: The Plot to Rule the Middle East, published
by Christopher Bollyn (August 1, 2017), ISBN-10: 0985322543, ISBN-13: 978-0985322540

Review:

This is a brilliant piece of work written by the author Christopher Bollyn who is an investigative
journalist himself. Christopher Bollyn is that rarest of mediaticians, a real-live investigative
journalist, formerly of the American Free Press, now altogether free, as befits a researcher-
writer of irreducible integrity. For the last decade and a half, Bollyn has made September
11th and its murderous military aftermath his own special beat, going where few 9/11 analysts
have dared to venture. Author’s great contention, is that it was not Bin Laden and Al Qaeda who
carried out the world’s greatest terror attack, but none other than Ben Netanyahu and El Mossad,
so as to foment an endless war against Israel’s perceived enemies in the Middle East.

Vide this book, the author has tried to open our eyes and to show us the real picture that how the
world politics has reached the lowest levels possible so as to achieve their single goal which is
world domination and how the political leaders of the world have become so ruthless to attain
that goal that they do not even think twice before ordering the mass massacre of innocent
persons so as to accomplish their goals. The worst reality behind the same is that people don’t
even realize who are the true orchestrators of the terrorist attacks and religious terrorism has
become a face behind which all these unknown yet politically influential and powerful people
hide.
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Bollyn expands on this point for the length of his book, claiming that the War on Terror has
been a greater curse on the world than 9/11 itself, costing trillions of American dollars and
millions of Muslim lives, with no end in sight. More damning is that all this was foreseen.

It comes as no surprise to learn in the chapter “9/11 and the War in Syria” that the United
States, Saudi Arabia, and Israel conjointly support the most savage of the anti-Western
militias there. The only purpose of all these parties is to terrorize and destroy the country. This
is not foreign policy, but state-sponsored sociopathy.

As Bollyn observes, the magnitude of such a fraud as 9/11 can’t stay hidden forever. Too many
people know already. Either the truth of 9/11 will prevail, or its perpetrators, who have nothing
to lose, may arrange something far worse.

The author has very well stated that questioning could start with Netanyahu’s long-time friend,
Larry Silverstein, who obtained the World Trade Center just weeks beforehand, arranged for
dubious, new security, and doubled the insurance. “Lucky Larry” is best known for being the
fortuitous owner of WTC 7, which wasn’t hit by a plane, but still managed to collapse neatly in
6.5 seconds later that afternoon. That this staggering fact is still largely unknown sixteen years
later speaks more cogently than any of Bollyn’s arguments to a deliberate media and
government cover-up.

The Facts mentioned in this brilliant piece of work are not just allegations but the same are very
well supported with the arguments and evidence provided by the author. The fact that the author
himself is an investigative journalist has helped him collect evidence and data and the same are
very well complied and presented to the viewers.

The book is so gripping that it aims to keep you on your toes throughout the whole journey of
the book. Every page is filled by surprise and the anger that the readers might feel about being
so uninformed and so manipulated by those influential few that it will make you doubt a lot of
every day happenings that seem to be normal but are fully capable of being maneuvered.

Some of the captivating moments in the books are:

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“Thousands of non-Afghan fighters joined [the anti-Western militia] Hezb-i-Islami,

including thousands of Arabs, known as Afghan Arabs. Osama bin Laden is the most
famous of the Afghan Arabs. Having trained a cadre of 4,000 anti-Western Islamic
fighters, Israeli military intelligence and C.I.A. had a database of names to populate the
Islamic anti-Western antithesis needed for the War on Terror construct. This database
was known as Al Qaeda.”

“As I explain in my Solving 9/11 books, the false-flag terror of 9/11 was an Israeli idea
from the beginning, first articulated by a former head of the Mossad in the 1970’s. At the
same time that [Mossad chief] Isser Harel was predicting how Arab terrorists would
attack the tallest towers in New York City, Benjamin Netanyahu was holding an
international conference of Western leaders in Jerusalem (1979) to promote a global war
against terrorism. Both concepts are products of Israeli strategic planners.”
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PRESENT SCENARIO

Terrorism has undergone what may be equivalent to genetic changes. In the earlier decades, its
agenda was mostly political, such as class questions, national liberation and urban or anarchic
issues. In the 1990s religious motivation has captured the centre stage. This development
introduces an abstract concept into the phenomenon. Terrorists of the new breed consider their
acts sanctified by God and, therefore, are not deterred by the values of any society other than
their own.

This terrorist operates both at the strategic and tactical level. At the former level, his objective is
publicity. Larger the number of victims, especially women, children and the elderly, more is the
publicity and, therefore, more is he pleased with his actions. At the latter level, he operates to
get a specific demand conceded, like release of compatriots, arrested earlier. Both types of
operations have an inbuilt element of punishment. Besides, punishment itself could be the
motivation as several incidents in J&K and elsewhere demonstrate.

These changes have been occurring as the debate around terrorism has moved onto new arena.
Former colonies have won their independence. Wars of national liberation have all but
disappeared. Urban guerrilla activity is on the wane as is class based or political ideological
terrorism. But religious and sectarian phenomena have grown tremendously to disturbing
proportions.

A study released recently held that the number of terrorist attacks each year has more than
quadrupled in the decade since September 11, 2001, with Iraq, Pakistan and Afghanistan the
most affected.

Iraq, Pakistan, Afghanistan, India and Yemen were the five countries most affected by terrorism
in descending order, it said, based on a measure giving weightings to number of attacks,
fatalities and injuries and level of property damage. The greatest deterioration in 2011 took
place in Syria and Yemen. Yemen has seen a dramatic upsurge in al Qaeda-linked activity in
recent years, while Syrian rebels fighting President Bashar al-Assad have increasingly turned to
suicide attacks and bombings. However, in the recent years it has been observed that the Europe
also has not remained alien to the terrorist attacks. There have been several major terrorist
attacks across Europe since 2010 which has resulted in loss of innumerable lives.
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There is a contention that the U.S. military interventions pursued as part of the West's anti-al
Qaeda "war on terror", may have simply made matters worse - while whether they made the
U.S. homeland safer was impossible to prove.

Hereinbelow are statistics pertaining to terrorist attack across the globe which will not only give
a person goosebumps but would compel a rational person to not only mourn for the lives lost but
would also get him thinking about the graveness of the situation.

MAJOR TERRORIST ATTACKS TAKEN PLACE IN 2018 (WHERE DEATH TOLL IS

MORE THAN 100)

Date Type of incident Dead Injured Location Perpetrator

27/01/2018 Suicide car bombing 103 235 Kabul, Taliban
Afghanistan
13/07/2018 Suicide bombing 150 186 Mastung, Islamic State
Pakistan
25/07/2018 Suicide bombing, shooting255 180 Syria Islamic State
and hostage taking

ATTACKS TAKEN PLACE IN 2018 THROUGHOUT THE WORLD

Month No. of Attacks Death Injury

January 2018 155 Approx. 800 More than 1000
February 2018 186 Approx. 500 Approx. 1000
March 2018 166 Approx. 900 More than 1000
April 2018 121 Approx. 750 Approx. 900
May 2018 154 Approx. 750 Approx. 800
June 2018 148 Approx. 800 Approx. 1000
July 2018 158 Approx. 1000 Approx. 1100
August 2018 84 Approx. 400 Approx. 450

TERRORIST ATTACKS IN EUROPE POST 2010

Date Country Incident Casualties Perpetrators

Dzimitry Kanavalau and Vlad
11 Apr 2011 Belarus Minsk Metro bombing 15 killed, 204 injured
Kavalyou
22 Jul 2011 Norway Norway attacks 77 killed, 319 injured Anders Behring Breivik
January 2015 Île-de-
7–9 Jan 2015 France 20 killed, 22 injured Al-Qaeda
France attacks
13 Jan 2015 Ukraine Volnovakha bus attack 12 killed, 18 injured Donetsk People's Republic
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Republic of
9 May 2015 Kumanovo clashes 22 killed, 37 injured National Liberation Army
Macedonia
November 2015 Paris
13 Nov 2015 France 137 killed, 368 injured Islamic State
attacks
22 Mar 2016 Belgium Brussels bombings 35 killed, 340 injured Islamic State
14 Jul 2016 France Nice truck attack 87 killed, 434 injured Islamic State
Berlin Christmas market
19 Dec 2016 Germany 12 killed, 56 injured Islamic State
attack
Manchester Arena
22 May 2017 UK 23 killed, 250 injured Islamic State
bombing
2017 London Bridge
3 Jun 2017 UK 11 killed, 48 injured Islamic State
attack
17–18 Aug
Spain 2017 Barcelona attacks 24 killed, 152 injured Islamic State (suspected)
2017

TERRORIST ATTACKS IN INDIA SINCE 2010

Date Incidence Location Fatalities Injured Status of

case
Feb13, 2010 2010 Pune bombing Pune 17 60 Pending
Feb15, 2010 Silda camp attack West Bengal 24 Pending
Aprl 6, 2010 April 2010 Maoist attack inChhattisgarh 84 (including8 Pending
Dantewada 8 terrorists)
17 May 2010 2010 Dantewada bus bombing Chhattisgarh 31-44 15 Pending
28 May 2010 Jnaneswari Express trainWest Bengal 148 200+ Pending
derailment
December 7,2010 Varanasi bombing Varanasi 1 20 Pending
2010
July 13, 2011 2011 Mumbai bombings Mumbai 26 130 Pending
Sept 7, 2011 2011 Delhi bombing Delhi 19 76 Pen ding
Feb 13, 2012 2012 attacks on Israeli diplomatsDelhi 0 4 Pending
Aug 1, 2012 2012 Pune bombings Pune 0 1 Pending
Feb 21, 2013 2013 Hyderabad blasts Hyderabad 16 119 Pending
March 13, 2013 March 2013 Srinagar attack Jammu and Kashmir 7 10 Pending
17 April 2013 2013 Bangalore blast Bengaluru 0 16 Pending
25 May 2013 2013 Naxal attack in DarbhaChhattisgarh 28 32 Pending
valley
24 June 2013 June 2013 Srinagar attack Jammu and Kashmir 8 19 Pending
7 July 2013 July 2013 Maoist attack inChhattisgarh 5 Pending
Dumka
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7 July 2013 Bodh Gaya bombings Bihar 0 5 Pending

27 Oct 2013 2013 Patna bombings Bihar 5 66 Pending
26 Dec 2013 2013 Jalpaiguri bombing West Bengal 5 5 Pending
11 March 2014 2014 Chhattisgarh attack Chhattisgarh 16 3 Pending
25 April 2014 Blast in Jharkhand Jharkhand 8 4-5 Pending
28 April 2014 Blast in Budgam District Jammu and Kashmir 0 18 Pending
1 May 2014 2014 Chennai train bombing Tamil Nadu 1 14 Pending
1 May 2014 May 2014 Assam violence Assam 33 Pending
12 May 2014 Maoist blast in GadchiroliJharkhand 7 2 Pending
District
23 Dec 2014 December 2014 Assam violenceAssam 85 Pending
28 Dec 2014 Bomb blast at Church Street,Bengaluru 1 5 Pending
Bangalore
23 Jan 2015 Ara Civil Court bombing Bihar 2 7+ Pending
20 March 2015 2015 Jammu attack Jammu and Kashmir 6 10 Pending
4-9 June 2015 2015 Manipur ambush Manipur 176 (including15 Pending
158 terrorists)
27 July 2015 2015 Gurdaspur attack in DinaPunjab 10 15 Pending
Nagar, Gurdaspur district
2 Jan 2016 2016 PathankotPunjab 7 Pending
attack in Pathankot Air Force
Station, Pathankot
25 June 2016 2016 Pampore attack Pampore 8 22 Pending
5 Aug 2016 2016 Kokrajhar Attack. Kokrajhar, Assam 14 15 Pending
18 Sept 2016 2016 Uri attack Uri, J&K 20 8 Pending
3 Oct 2016 2016 Baramulla attack Baramulla, J&K Not available Not Pending
available
6 Oct 2016 2016 Handwara attack atHandwara, J&K Not available Not Pending
rashtriya riffles camp available
29 Nov 2016 2016 Nagrota Attack Nagrota, J&K 10 Pending
24 April 2017 2017 Sukma attack Sukma 26 Pending
district, Chhattisgarh
March 7, 2017 2017 Bhopal–Ujjain PassengerBhopal, Madhya 0 10 Pending
train bombing Pradesh
July 11, 2017 2017 Amarnath Yatra attack Anantnag, Jammu &7 6 Pending
Kashmir

March 13, 2018 2018 Sukma attack Sukma 9 0 Pending

district, Chhattisgarh
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The statistics mentioned hereinabove portray a glaring and a horrific picture of the current world
situation and the threat that the humanity, mankind and the world in whole face on account the
ever rising acts of terrorism. It is imperative to note that this data does not even include the acts
of domestic terrorism or the state sponsored terrorism. It is further pertinent to note that the
aerial bombings and the acts of using chemical weapons by the USA in Syria are also resulting
in numerous deaths of innocent persons in Syria and the same also amount to acts of terrorism.
However, using media influence and their political influence, USA is strategically avoiding any
association of the word terrorism with the acts conducted by them. There is absolutely no
accountability that the USA has to face for these acts of Terrorism committed by them and they
not only escape scot free from any kind of punishment but also attempt to portray an image that
they have done nothing wrong as they have acted for the benefit of people at large. There is an
urgent need to carry an in depth study of all the acts of terrorism carried out by the state or
sponsored by the states like USA and Russia and to hold them liable and responsible for the
same. Till the time such powerful and influential countries are allowed to roam scot free, there
would be an increasing anger among the minds of the people affected and the same would result
into even more numbers of terrorist attacks. This is a vicious cycle and the only was to get out of
it is if the states and the influential and powerful institutions and persons are held liable and
accountable for their wrongdoings.

The other area that requires study is that a rational solution is required as to how information
and rational thinking can be cultivated in the minds of every person of the world and mostly the
youth so that they cannot be brainwashed or wrongfully influenced and sucked in the hell hole
of terrorism.
 P a g e | 19

LEGAL ANALYSIS

With the rising terrorist attacks the security of the citizens of the country has gained paramount
importance. Several Conventions and laws have been passed by the states collectively as well as
in their individual capacity to curb terrorism. Some of those are as follows:

 1963 Convention on Offences and Certain Other Acts Committed On Board Aircraft (Tokyo
Convention)
 1970 Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Seizure of Aircraft (Hague Convention)
 1971 Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against the Safety of Civil
Aviation (Sabotage Convention or Montreal Convention)
 1973 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Crimes Against Internationally
Protected Persons (Diplomatic Agents Convention)
 1979 International Convention against the Taking of Hostages (Hostages Convention)
 1980 Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material (Nuclear Materials
Convention)
 1988 Protocol for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts of Violence at Airports Serving
International Civil Aviation (Airport Protocol)
 1988 Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against the Safety of Maritime
Navigation (Maritime Convention)
 1988 Protocol for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against the Safety of Fixed Platforms
Located on the Continental Shelf (Fixed Platform Protocol)
 1991 Convention on the Marking of Plastic Explosives for the Purpose of Detection (Plastic
Explosives Convention)
 1997 International Convention for the Suppression of Terrorist Bombings (Terrorist
Bombing Convention)
 1999 International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism (Terrorist
Financing Convention)
 2005 International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism (Nuclear
Terrorism Convention)
 2010 Convention on the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Relating to International Civil
Aviation (Beijing Convention)
 P a g e | 20

 2010 Protocol Supplementary to the Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Seizure of
Aircraft (Beijing Protocol)

Federal acts passed in the United States against terrorism.

 Biological Weapons Anti-Terrorism Act of 1989

 Executive Order 12947 signed by President Bill Clinton Jan. 23, 1995, Prohibiting
Transactions With Terrorists Who Threaten To Disrupt the Middle East Peace Process, and
later expanded to include freezing the assets of Osama bin Laden and others.
 Omnibus Counterterrorism Act of 1995
 US Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (see also the LaGrand
case which opposed in 1999-2001 Germany to the US in the International Court of
Justice concerning a German citizen convicted of armed robbery and murder, and sentenced
to death)
 Executive Order 13224, signed by President George W. Bush Sept. 23, 2001, among other
things, authorizes the seizure of assets of organizations or individuals designated by the
Secretary of the Treasury to assist, sponsor, or provide material or financial support or who
are otherwise associated with terrorists. 66 Fed. Reg. 49,079 (Sept. 23, 2001).
 2001 Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools for Intercepting
and Obstructing Terrorism Act (USA PATRIOT Act)(amended March 2006)(the Financial
Anti-Terrorism Act was integrated to it)
 Homeland Security Act of 2002, Pub. L. 107-296.
 Border Protection, Anti-terrorism, and Illegal Immigration Control Act of 2005
 REAL ID Act of 2005
 Military Commissions Act of 2006

Anti-terrorist legislation in the European Union

 EU Framework Decision on Terrorism

 EU Directive 2017/541 on combating terrorism

Apart from these, there are several independent acts passed by the countries under the European
Union to prosecute the terrorist acts within their own territories.

Laws passed in India against terrorism.

 P a g e | 21

 Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (1985–1995)

 Prevention of Terrorist Activities Act (2002–2004)
 Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, 1967
 Unlawful Activites Prevention (Amendment) Act, 2004
 Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act, 1999
 The Arms Act, 1959
 Arms Rules, 2016
 Explosives Substances Act, 1908
 Indian Penal Code
 Code of Criminal Procedure
 Explosives Act, 1884
 Explosive Rules, 2008
 Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act, 1984

It is pertinent to note that even after having so many legislations and international conventions
to combat terrorism, the terrorist acts have become rampant in todays world. Especially in the
last decade there have been so many terrorist attacks and so many people have lost their lives.
Even after making the laws on terrorism so stringent, the number of terrorist attacks are
increasing. If most of the cases of terrorist attacks are studied, it is found that the terrorist
themselves never come out alive. It is very rare that a terrorist is caught and imprisoned. When
the terrorist leave their houses knowing fully well that these acts of terrorism are going to cost
them their lives, they are not very affected by the laws in place to prosecute them as in most of
the cases, the prosecution does not come for the people committing those acts but usually comes
to those persons who are found aiding or abetting such acts. That is the reason that even after
having so many laws in place, the number of attacks keep rising. Therefore, even after having so
many laws, the same cannot be said to be a way to counter terrorism. As rightly said by Malala
Yousafzai, the youngest Nobel Award winner for peace that:

“Guns can kill terrorist but only education kills terrorism”

 P a g e | 22

ROLE OF JUDICIARY

We are going to focus in detail two of the most talked about cases pertaining to religious
terrorism which in reality are cases of political terrorism and how influential persons are trying
to reach their political objectives under the garb of religious terrorism.

CASE A : TERRORIST ATTACKS ON MUMBAI 26/11/2008.

Case History:

The 2008 Mumbai attacks (also referred to as 26/11) were a group of terrorist attacks that took
place in November 2008, when 10 members of Lashkar-e-Taiba, an Islamic
terrorist organisation based in Pakistan, carried out a series of 12 coordinated shooting and
bombing attacks lasting four days across Mumbai. The attacks, which drew widespread global
condemnation, began on Wednesday, 26 November and lasted until Saturday, 29 November
2008. 164 people died and 308 were wounded.

Eight of the attacks occurred in South Mumbai: at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, the Oberoi
Trident, the Taj Palace & Tower, Leopold Cafe, Cama Hospital, the Nariman House Jewish
community centre, the Metro Cinema, and in a lane behind the Times of India building and St.
Xavier's College. There was also an explosion at Mazagaon, in Mumbai's port area, and in a taxi
at Vile Parle. By the early morning of 28 November, all sites except for the Taj Hotel had been
secured by Mumbai Police Department and security forces. On 29 November, India's National
Security Guards (NSG) conducted 'Operation Black Tornado' to flush out the remaining
attackers; it culminated in the death of the last remaining attackers at the Taj Hotel and ended
the attacks.

Ajmal Kasab disclosed that the attackers were members of Lashkar-e-Taiba, among others.
The Government of India said that the attackers came from Pakistan, and their controllers were
in Pakistan. On 7 January 2009, Pakistan confirmed the sole surviving perpetrator of the attacks
was a Pakistani citizen. On 9 April 2015, the foremost ringleader of the attacks, Zakiur Rehman
Lakhvi, was granted bail against surety bonds of ₨200,000 (US$1,900) in Pakistan.
Kasab's trial was delayed due to legal issues, as many Indian lawyers were unwilling to
represent him. A Mumbai Bar Association passed a resolution proclaiming that none of its
members would represent Kasab. However, the Chief Justice of India stated that Kasab needed a
lawyer for a fair trial. A lawyer for Kasab was eventually found, but was replaced due to a
 P a g e | 23

conflict of interest. On 25 February 2009, Indian investigators filed an 11,000-page chargesheet,

formally charging Kasab with murder, conspiracy, and waging war against India among other
charges.

Kasab's trial began on 6 May 2009. He initially pleaded not guilty, but later admitted his guilt on
20 July 2009. He initially apologised for the attacks and claimed that he deserved the death
penalty for his crimes, but later retracted these claims, saying that he had been tortured by police
to force his confession, and that he had been arrested while roaming the beach. The court had
accepted his plea, but due to the lack of completeness within his admittance, the judge had
deemed that many of the 86 charges were not addressed and therefore the trial continued.

Kasab was convicted of all 86 charges on 3 May 2010. He was found guilty of murder for
directly killing seven people, conspiracy to commit murder for the deaths of the 164 people
killed in the three-day terror siege, waging war against India, causing terror, and of conspiracy
to murder two high-ranking police officers. On 6 May 2010, he was sentenced to death by
hanging. However, he appealed his sentence at high court. On 21 February 2011, the Bombay
High Court upheld the death sentence of Kasab, dismissing his appeal.

On 29 August 2012, the Indian Supreme Court upheld the death sentence for Kasab. The court
stated, "We are left with no option but to award death penalty. The primary and foremost
offence committed by Kasab is waging war against the Government of India.” The verdict
followed 10 weeks of appeal hearings, and was decided by a two-judge Supreme Court panel,
which was led by Judge Aftab Alam. The panel rejected arguments that Kasab was denied a free
and fair trial.

Kasab filed a mercy petition with the President of India, which was rejected on 5 November.
Kasab was hanged in Pune's Yerwada jail in secret on 21 November 2012 at 7:30 am and
naming the operation as operation 'X'. The Indian mission in Islamabad informed the Pakistan
government about Kasab's hanging through letter. Pakistan refused to take the letter, which was
then faxed to them. His family in Pakistan was sent news of his hanging via a courier.

Summary of Judgement:

Mohammed Ajmal Mohammad Amir Kasab @ Abu Mujahid (for convenience, "A1-Kasab")
was tried along with two others viz. Fahim Harshad Mohammad Yusuf Ansari @ Abu Jarar @
Sakib @ Sahil Pawarkar @ Samir Sheikh @ Ahmed Hasan (since acquitted) (for convenience,
 P a g e | 24

"A2-Ansari") and Sabauddin Ahamed Shabbir Ahmed Sheikh @ Saba @ Farhan @ Mubbashir
@ Babar @ Sameer Singh @ Sanjiv @ Abu-Al- Kasim @ Iftikhar @ Murshad @ Mohammad
Shafiq @ Ajmal Ali (since acquitted) (for convenience, "A3- Shaikh") in Sessions Case No.175
of 2009 by the Court of Sessions for Greater Mumbai for offences punishable under Sections
120-B, 121 r/w 120-B r/w 109, 121-A, 122 r/w 120-B r/w 109, 302 r/w 120-B r/w 109, 307 r/w
120-B r/w 109, 333 r/w 120-B r/w 109, 342 r/w 120-B r/w 109, 343 r/w 120-B r/w 109, 364 r/w
120-B r/w 109, 465 r/w 120-B r/w 109, 468 r/w 120-B r/w 109, 419 r/w 120-B r/w 109 of Indian
Penal Code (for short, "IPC"), under Sections 25(1B)(a) of Arms Act r/w 120-B r/w 109 of the
IPC 25(1A) of Arms Act r/w 120-B r/w 109 of IPC, 25(2)(3) of Arms Act r/w 120-B r/w 109 of
IPC, 27 of Arms Act r/w 120-B r/w 109 of IPC, under Sections 10, 13, 16, 18 and 23 of the
Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, under Sections 9-B(1)(a)(b) of Explosives Act r/w
120-B r/w 109 of IPC, under Sections 3 of the Explosives Substances Act r/w 120-B r/w 109 of
IPC, under Sections 4(a) of Explosives Substances Act r/w 120-B r/w 109 of IPC, under
Sections 3(3) of Passport (Entry into India) Act, 1920 r/w 120-B r/w 109 of IPC, under Sections
3 and 4 of the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act, 1984 r/w 120-B r/w 109 of IPC,
under Sections 151, 152 and 153 of the Railways Act r/w 120-B r/w 109 of IPC, under Section
135 of the Customs Act r/w 120-B r/w 109 of IPC, under Section 14 of Foreigners Act r/w 120-
B r/w 109 of IPC.

2. In addition to that, A1-Kasab was also charged for the offences punishable under Sections
302 r/w 34, 307 r/w 34, 333 r/w 34, 342 r/w 34, 343 r/w 34, 364 r/w 34, 465 r/w 34, 468 r/w 34,
419 r/w 34 of IPC under Sections 25(1B)(a) of Arms Act r/w 34 of IPC, under Section 25(1A)
of the Arms Act r/w 34 of IPC, under Section 25(2)(3) of Arms Act r/w 34 of IPC, under
Section 27 of Arms Act r/w 34 of IPC, under Section 9-B(1)(a)(b) of Explosives Act r/w 34 of
IPC, under Section 3 of Explosives Substances Act r/w 34 of IPC, under Section 4(a) of
Explosives Substances Act r/w 34 of IPC, under Section 3(3) of Passport (Entry into India) Act,
1920 r/w 34 of IPC, under Sections 3 and 4 of Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act,
1984 r/w 34 of IPC, under Sections 151, 152 and 153 of the Railway Act r/w 34 of IPC, under
Section 135 of Customs Act r/w 34 of IPC, under Section 14 of Foreigners Act r/w 34 of IPC.

3. Further A1-Kasab was also charged independently for the offences punishable under Sections
302, 307, 333, 342, 343, 364, 465, 468, 419 and 397 of the IPC, under Sections 25(1B)(a),
25(1A), 25(2)(3), 27 of Arms Act, under Section 9-B(1)(a)(b) of Explosives Act, under Section
3 and 4(a) of Explosives Substances Act, under Section 3(3) of the Passport (Entry into India)
 P a g e | 25

Act, 1920, under Sections 3 and 4 of Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act, 1984, under
Sections 151, 152 and 153 of the Railway Act, under Section 135 of the Customs Act, under
Section 14 of the Foreigners Act.

4. A2-Ansari was also independently charged for the offences punishable under Sections 465
and 471 of the IPC.

5.For trying the accused under Sections 121, 121A and 122 of the IPC, for offences under the
Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, for offences under the Customs Act and for
offences under the Arms Act, sanctions were required under Sections 188 and 196 of the Code
of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (for short, "the Code") under Section 39 of the Arms Act, under
Section 45 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 and under Section 135 of the
Customs Act respectively. Consent of the District Magistrate for trying the accused for offences
under the Explosive Substances Act, 1908 was necessary. Learned Sessions Judge has returned a
finding that the necessary sanctions were taken. There is no challenge to this finding before us,
hence it is not necessary for us to go into that aspect. In any case, we have perused the relevant
evidence and, we are of the opinion that the said finding is correct.

Kasab was convicted for all the offences and was later on secretly hanged to death.

CASE B: RAJNEESH BIOTERROR ATTACK 1984.

Case History:

The 1984 Rajneesh bioterror attack was the food poisoning of 751 individuals in the
Dalles, Oregon, through the deliberate contamination of salad bars at ten local restaurants
with Salmonella. A group of prominent followers of Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh (later known as
Osho) led by Ma Anand Sheela had hoped to incapacitate the voting population of the city so
that their own candidates would win the 1984 Wasco County elections. The incident was the
first and single largest bioterrorist attack in United States history. The attack is one of only two
confirmed terrorist uses of biological weapons to harm humans since 1945, the other being
the 2001 anthrax attacks in the United States.

Having previously gained political control of Antelope, Oregon, Rajneesh's followers, who were
based in nearby Rajneeshpuram, sought election to two of the three seats on the Wasco County
 P a g e | 26

Circuit Court that were up for election in November 1984. Fearing they would not gain enough
votes, some Rajneeshpuram officials decided to incapacitate voters in The Dalles, the largest
population center in Wasco County. The chosen biological agent was Salmonella enterica
Typhimurium, which was first delivered through glasses of water to two County Commissioners
and then, on a larger scale, at salad bars and in salad dressing.

As a result of the attack, 751 people contracted salmonellosis, 45 of whom were hospitalized,
but none died. Although an initial investigation by the Oregon Public Health Division and
the Centers for Disease Control did not rule out deliberate contamination, the agents and
contamination were only confirmed a year later. On February 28, 1985, Congressman James H.
Weaver gave a speech in the United States House of Representatives in which he "accused the
Rajneeshees of sprinkling Salmonella culture on salad bar ingredients in eight restaurants".

At a press conference in September 1985, Rajneesh accused several of his followers of

participation in this and other crimes, including an aborted plan in 1985 to assassinate a United
States Attorney, and he asked State and Federal authorities to investigate. Oregon Attorney
General David B. Frohnmayer set up an Interagency Task Force, composed of Oregon State
Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and executed search warrants in Rajneeshpuram.
A sample of bacteria matching the contaminant that had sickened the town residents was found
in a Rajneeshpuram medical laboratory. Two leading Rajneeshpuram officials were convicted
on charges of attempted murder and served 29 months of 20-year sentences in a minimum-
security federal prison.

Officials and investigators from a number of different state and federal agencies investigated the
outbreak. Dr. Michael Skeels, Director of the Oregon State Public Health Laboratory at the time,
said that the incident provoked such a large public health investigation because "it was the
largest food-related outbreak in the U.S. in 1984".The investigation identified the bacteria
as Salmonella enterica Typhimurium and initially concluded that the outbreak had been due to
food handlers' poor personal hygiene. Workers preparing food at the affected restaurants had
fallen ill before most patrons had.

Oregon Democratic Congressman James H. Weaver continued to investigate because he

believed that the officials' conclusion did not adequately explain the facts. He contacted
physicians at the CDC and other agencies and urged them to investigate Rajneeshpuram.
According to Lewis F. Carter's book Charisma and Control in Rajneeshpuram, "many treated
his concern" as paranoid or as an example of "Rajneeshee bashing". On February 28, 1985,
 P a g e | 27

Weaver gave a speech at the United States House of Representatives in which he accused the
Rajneeshees of contaminating salad bar ingredients in eight restaurants. As events later showed,
Weaver had presented a well-reasoned, if only circumstantial, case; these circumstantial
elements were confirmed by evidence found after investigators gained access to Rajneeshpuram
several months later.

Months later, starting on September 16, 1985, Rajneesh, who had recently emerged from a four-
year period of public silence and self-imposed isolation (although he had continued to meet with
his assistant) at the commune, convened press conferences: he stated that Sheela and 19 other
commune leaders, including Puja, had left Rajneeshpuram over the weekend and gone to
Europe. He said that he had received information from commune residents that Sheela and her
team had committed a number of serious crimes. Calling them a "gang of fascists", he said they
had tried to poison his doctor and Rajneesh's female companion, as well as the Jefferson
County district attorney and the water system in The Dallas. He said that he believed they had
poisoned a county commissioner and Judge William Hulse, and that they may have been
responsible for the salmonellosis outbreak in The Dallas. He invited state and federal law
enforcement officials to the Ranch to investigate. His allegations were initially greeted with
skepticism by outside observers.

Oregon Attorney General Dave Frohnmayer established a task force among the Wasco County
Sheriff's office, the Oregon State Police, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI),
the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) and the National Guard that set up
headquarters on the Ranch to investigate the allegations. They obtained search warrants and
subpoenas; 50 investigators entered the Ranch on October 2, 1985. Dr. Skeels found glass vials
containing Salmonella "bactrol disks" in the laboratory of a Rajneeshpuram medical clinic.
Analysis by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lab in Atlanta confirmed that the
bacteria at the Rajneesh laboratory were an exact match to those that sickened individuals who
had eaten at local restaurants.

The investigation also revealed prior experimentation at Rajneeshpuram with poisons, chemicals
and bacteria, in 1984 and 1985. Dr. Skeels described the scene at the Rajneesh laboratory as "a
bacteriological freezer-dryer for large-scale production" of microbes. Investigators found a copy
of The Anarchist Cookbook, and literature on the manufacture and usage of explosives and
military bio-warfare. Investigators believed that the commune had previously carried out similar
attacks in Salem, Portland, and other cities in Oregon. According to court testimony, the plotters
boasted that they had attacked a nursing home and a salad bar at the Mid-Columbia Medical
 P a g e | 28

Center, but no such attempts were ever proven in court. As a result of the bioterrorism
investigation, law enforcement officials discovered that there had been an aborted plot by
Rajneeshees to murder Charles Turner, a former United States Attorney for Oregon.

Prosecution:

The mayor of Rajneeshpuram, David Berry Knapp (known as Swami Krishna Deva or
KD), turned state's evidence and gave an account of his knowledge of the Salmonella attack to
the FBI. He claimed that Sheela said "she had talked with [Rajneesh] about the plot to decrease
voter turnout in The Dalles by making people sick. Sheela said that [Rajneesh] commented that
it was best not to hurt people, but if a few died not to worry."[11] In Miller's Germs: Biological
Weapons and America's Secret War, this statement is attributed to Sheela. According to KD's
testimony, she played doubters a tape of Rajneesh's muffled voice saying, "if it was necessary to
do things to preserve [his] vision, then do it," and interpreted this to mean that murder in his
name was fine, telling doubters "not to worry" if a few people had to die. The investigation
uncovered a September 25, 1984, invoice from the American Type Culture Collection of
microbes, showing an order received by the Rajneeshpuram laboratory for Salmonella typhi, the
bacterium that causes the life-threatening illness typhoid fever.

According to a 1994 study published in the journal Sociology of Religion, "most sannyasins
indicated that they believed that [Rajneesh] knew about Ma Anand Sheela's illegal activities."
Frances FitzGerald writes in Cities on a Hill that most of Rajneesh's followers "believed [him]
incapable of doing, or willing, violence against another person", and that almost all thought the
responsibility for the criminality was Sheela's – according to FitzGerald, the followers believed
the guru had not known anything about it. Carus writes in Toxic Terror that, "There is no way to
know to what extent [Rajneesh] participated in actual decision-making. His followers believed
he was involved in every important decision that Sheela made, but those allegations were never
proven." Rajneesh insisted that Sheela, who he said was his only source of information during
his period of isolation, used her position to impose "a fascist state" on the commune. He
acknowledged that the key to her actions was his silence.

Rajneesh left Oregon by plane on October 27, 1985, and was arrested when he landed
in Charlotte, North Carolina, and charged with 35 counts of deliberate violations of immigration
laws. As part of a plea bargain arrangement, he pleaded guilty to two counts of making false
statements to immigration officials. He received a ten-year suspended sentence and a fine of
 P a g e | 29

US$400,000, and was deported and barred from re-entering the United States for a period of five
years. He was never prosecuted for crimes related to the Salmonella attack.

Sheela and Puja were arrested in West Germany on October 28, 1985. After protracted
negotiations between the two governments, they were extradited to the United States, reaching
Portland on February 6, 1986. They were charged with attempting to murder Rajneesh's
personal physician, first-degree assault for poisoning Judge William Hulse, second-degree
assault for poisoning The Dalles Commissioner Raymond Matthews, and product tampering for
the poisonings in The Dalles, as well as wiretapping and immigration offenses. The U.S.
Attorney's office handled the prosecution of the poisoning cases related to the 10 restaurants,
and the Oregon Attorney General's office prosecuted the poisoning cases of Commissioner
Matthews and Judge Hulse.

On July 22, 1986, both women entered Alford pleas for the Salmonella attack and the other
charges, and received sentences ranging from three to twenty years, to be served concurrently.
Sheela received 20 years for the attempted murder of Rajneesh's physician, twenty years for
first-degree assault in the poisoning of Judge Hulse, ten years for second-degree assault in the
poisoning of Commissioner Matthews, four and a half years for her role in the attack, four and a
half years for the wiretapping conspiracy, and five years' probation for immigration fraud; Puja
received fifteen, fifteen, seven and a half, and four and a half years, respectively, for her role in
the first four of these crimes, as well as three years' probation for the wiretapping conspiracy.
Both Sheela and Puja were released on parole early for good behavior, after serving twenty-nine
months of their sentences in a minimum-security federal prison. Sheela's Green Card was
revoked; she moved to Switzerland.
 P a g e | 30

CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS

How the terrorism flows: authority > power > force > violence
Terrorism is a complex phenomenon for policy makers and so are the responses. Some strategies
are more usefully for dealing with specific types of terrorism than others. When combating
religious terrorism, coordinating with religious leaders and building a relationship with them
will encourage better cooperation. Treating all the members of a religious group as if they are
terrorists will only alienate that group and make them more prone to violence in retaliation.
Similarly, separatist terrorism can be combated with more inclusive political processes that
allow outlets for political dissent. Taking out leaders and members of terrorist networks with
specific skills is always a good approach for combating terrorism in general. Targeting terrorist
funding is also a crucial strategy. Finally, facilitating the exit of individual low-level terrorists
from these networks and easing their peaceful reintegration back into society is an important
step in ending terrorism.
All these are the general counter terrorism methods that are usually followed. But the need of
the hour is completely different. At the time of introduction we had made two assumptions, one
that a general law is enough to combat all the types and forms of terrorism and the other that
different forms of terrorism are distinct on account of the independent and distinguished
attributes that each forms of terrorism has and they do not overlap each other.It is pertinent to
note that after going conducting a research in the said matter, I have come to the conclusion that
the general people are living in a mirage where they are made to believe in a lot of ideologies
that do not exist. I have come to the conclusion that terrorism in this world is a two faced
phenomenon.

One which is portrayed in front of us by the likes of persons like Qasab and other thousands of
them who end of giving up their lives even without truly understanding the outcome of their
acts. The other face which is mostly covered by a masquerade is the real terrorist whom we
should fear. These are the persons who get their political agenda straight by brain washing
illiterate persons into believing that they are sacrificing their lives for God, their fellow brethren,
the betterment of their religion and to secure a good place in heaven whereas the truth of the
matter is that they instigate these people and cause them to not only give their lives but at the
same time to kill thousands of persons so that they can maintain their dominance on the world.
Such people are ruthless and they only care about their power and dominion and nothing else.
 P a g e | 31

Abraham Lincoln has beautifully said that “Power Corrupts and absolute power corrupts
absolutely”

A great philosophy by an even greater leader holds ground in today’s scenario. The people in
power are so obsessed with that power and with every passing day, their addiction keeps on
increasing. When any challenge or threat looms over their power, they become so restless and
start with the killings of the persons.

“It is perfectly possible to determine who the terrorists are and who stands behind them. If
governments have failed to do this, it is more often not for lack of knowledge, but for lack of
courage and moral clarity.” (Terrorism: How the West Can Win, 1986)

What is even more dangerous is that such persons are never held accountable or liable for the
heinous acts that they commit and to ensure that they do not become accountable for same, they
resort to all these different forms of terrorism and majorly under the garb of religious terrorism
carry out these preposterous and unscrupulous acts.It is imperative to note that in the todays
times when such acts have become so rampant, there are no acts or legislations passed by the
legislature to ensure that the real masterminds behind such inhumane acts are punished and
prosecuted for the heinous acts committed by them. Even at the time of conclusion, I am making
another assumption that the legislators are also under the influence of these powerful few who
aim to rule. If that was not the case, then already laws would have been made to differentiate
religious and political terrorism and to ensure that each and every one involved in these heinous
acts is made to pay for the crimes committed by them.

The only way to make the world a better and a peaceful place is that to create awareness and
greater amount of transparency as much as possible. The more literacy and tolerance prevails
amongst the common persons, the difficult it would be to instigate the persons on religious or
other grounds. As it would get difficult to find persons who would be willing to sacrifice their
lives for them, it would mean that they would not have cover stories to carry out their heinous
acts and with more amount of transparency and awareness it would become difficult for those
powerful few to carry out such operations without being caught red handed which would
deprive them of their respect, power as well as the so called influential positions and this fear
alone is enough to deter them from carryong out such acts. All of these would be possible only
through education and therefore, education and that too right education has become the need of
the hour. As rightly said by Malala Yousafzai, the youngest Nobel Award winner for peace that:
“If the new generation is not given pens, they will be given guns by the terrorist”
 P a g e | 32

WAY FORWARD

“Peace cannot be kept by force; it can only be achieved by understanding.”

― Albert Einstein

When people learn to tolerate each other and accept the diversity but still hold a united front it
will become difficult for those so called preachers and religious leaders who give hate speech
and try to instigate and brainwash people. However, all of this is possible only and only if
rational thinking in ingrained in each and every person.

The fight against terrorism is intense and the road long, but together when all the people across
the globe will come together and unite is the day, humanity will come to life again, for no
person is born a terrorist.

The earlier the people understand this the earlier we would be able to end terrorism. It is seen
that the concept of patriotism is fed to children since the school time. However, it’s the need of
the hour that the children be taught about rationalism, about loving mankind and all other
species living on earth and the most important of them all is the concept of world citizenship.
The day people start viewing other humans as just humans without associating them with any
attributes like religion, nationality, power or ideology is the day when there will be a better
understanding in the world and love for all.

Concluding this project with the hope that one day and hopefully soon, people will truly realize
and practice this beautiful quote:

“When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace.”
― Jimi Hendrix
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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Cases Referred:

1. Mumbai 26/11 case

2. Rajneesh Bioterror Attack Case, 1984

Links:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-terrorism_legislation

https://www.thoughtco.com/religious-terrorism

http://www.indiandefencereview.com/news/international-terrorism-a-perspective-to-current-
scenarios/

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/terrorism

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_terrorist_incidents_in_India

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/terrorist-attacks-quadrupled-2001-article

http://www.terrorismanalysts.com/pt/index.php/pot/article/view/336/html

www.terrorismanalysts.com/pt/index.php/pot/article/view

http://globalbrief.ca/blog/2010/10/13/terrorism-as-politics-by-other-means/

https://law.geekupd8.com/2013/02/Ajmal-Kasab-Mumbai-26-11-Attacker-Case-Judgement.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008_Mumbai_attacks#Kasab's_trial

https://ahtribune.com/history/1957-netanyahu-war.html

http://www.terrorism-research.com/

https://hlsonline.eku.edu/hls-101-terrorism

https://www.thoughtco.com/types-of-terrorism-3209376

https://www.crimemuseum.org/crime-library/terrorism/types-of-terrorism/

http://handofreason.com/2011/featured/types-of-terrorism

http://paperroom.ipsa.org/papers/paper_892.pdf

https://study.com/academy/lesson/what-is-terrorism-definition-history-types-statistics.html

https://chainsoff.files.wordpress.com/2016/11/terrorism-definition-and-types.pdf