PTI
New Delhi, Dec 12: The CPM on Thursday sought to link signing of the Indo-US nuclear deal with the Mumbai terror strikes, alleging that the country has been exposed to "new dangers" with the signing of the pact.
"What brought the terrorist outfits to our shores? With the Indo-US nuclear deal you are seen as an ally of the US, a strategic partner. There seems to be a total lack of appreciation of this thought from the government's side," CPM leader Sitaram Yechury said in Rajya Sabha on Thursday.
Participating in a debate on Mumbai attacks, he said the nuclear deal has exposed the country to "further threats".
"The degree of complacency has been such that you did not factor in this new factor. We have been exposed to new dangers due to the Indo-US nuclear deal," said the Marxist leader whose party broke ties with the government over the deal.
Yechury said there should not be a "compartmentalised" approach in combating terrorism in the country.
"We need to avoid the compartmentalised approach. Witch-hunting of a particular community would further breed terror," he said.
He opposed any move to "curb the rights" of the states by enacting a federal investigative agency.
"The powers and the rights of states cannot be encroached upon by the creating an agency. At the same time, there is also need for better coordination among different agencies in the country. We need to look into both these factors while formulating the agency," Yechury said.
Yechury sought to question the National Security Adviser continuing in office after the terror attacks.
"Where is the sense of accountability, we have the National Security Adviser and the whole set-up and other agencies still there," he said.
"The problem of terrorism in the country is as diverse as the country itself. Terrorism knows no religion, no region and no caste," Yechury said.
Opposing any new law to fight terror, he favoured correcting loopholes in the present laws if required.
"It is not the inadequacy of any law that caused the Mumbai terror attacks. If needed we can correct the loopholes in the present laws," he said.
"There is a need to create a new security architecture in the country. This sorry state of affairs need to be plugged," Yechury said.
Lashing out at the media over the coverage of Mumbai attacks, he said, "breaking news were infact breaking the unity of the country."
He said there was need to formulate a system to regulate media without infringing into the right to freedom of expression.
Slamming the opposition BJP, he said the measures suggested during the NDA regime have not been put in place. He also said "communalism and terrorism feed on each other".
He cited a media report quoting a LeT spokesman as saying that the BJP coming to power was helpful to the growth of their network in India.