Spremises in Uttar Pradesh on October 23. The terror attack claimed several lives. The news reports put the death toll at 13 while 60 persons were reportedly injured. The deceased included four lawyers.

Courts at Lucknow, Faizabad and Varanasi were targeted for the terror strikes. The bombs were loaded on bicycles parked outside the lawyers, chambers at the three places. The bombs were synchronized to go off a little after 1:15 p.m. according to the news sources.

One bomb each was recovered from Faizabad and Lucknow while three other were detonated. According to the authorities the bombs used in this case bear similarity to those used in the serial blasts at Varanasi in 2006.

The blast is another gruesome act of terror after last month's bomb explosions at a cinema hall in Ludhiana and another one at Ajmer. The explosions are being seen as repercussions of the terrorist outfits against lawyers who attacked and denied representation to suspected terrorists. In an incident on November 18, the lawyers had beaten up Pakistani nationals Mohammad Yusuf and Mirza Rashid who were alleged to be members of their terror outfit Jaishe Mohammad. The two were accused of being assigned the task of assassinating the Congress General Secretary, Rahul Gandhi.

In another incident at Faizabad lawyers had denied representation to five other Jaish terrorists alleged to be involved in a 2005 attack on Babri Masjid complex. The act is being seen as retaliation against the lawyers for the two incidents. The attacks were accompanied by emails, which were sent minutes after the incident took place. Indian Mujahideen sent these to various national television channels from guru_alhindi@yahoo.fr. The terror group was hitherto unheard of. The e-mails held the police responsible for the attack. It claimed that the attack was an act of retaliation against the arrest of two innocent groups and framing them in charges of terror attacks. The e-mail also declared that the members of the group were waging a war against corruption and the Hindu fundamentalists. The group believes that only Islam has the capacity to establish a civilized society free of all evils. Islamic rule is essential to create such a world and this can be done only through Jihad.

Time and again the terrorist outfits have related their gruesome attacks claiming innocent lives to the religion of Islam. The acts of violence that were once restricted to a few parts of India. Today they have grown both in their reach and magnitude. The terrorist outfits have spread their web far and wide making it difficult to trace them. One thing has come out very strongly in these attacks is the belief of the terrorists in their cause. This has perhaps the most dangerous weapon they possess.

Violence revisited at Nandigram

Nandigram again suffered a spurt of violence on Communist Party of India (Marxist)(CPI)(M) supporters opened fire on two rallies of unarmed villagers here. The Bhumi Uchchhed Pratirodh Committee (BUPC) organized the rally. Nandigram has been on the boil over the issue of procurement of farmlands for setting up factories for the past 11 months. The situation took a turn for worse when police opened fire at Nandigarm on March 14. Ever since, the place has been home to sporadic violence.

The recent firing at Nandigram has once again focused the attention of the nation towards the ongoing troubles at this place. It is horrifying to note that only fire was opened at unarmed people but also medical aid was denied to them. The blockade created by the supporters of CPI (M) hindered the ambulance too. The journalists and activists were also denied admission to the area, which went literally under the control of these supporters.

After the attacks, people on motorcycles took out a rally to claim their victory over gaining control of the area. It is also alleged that they forced the people left in the area to join them in their show of strength.The unrest at Nandigram has claimed several innocent lives and uprooted several homes. The tit for tat game at Nandigram has created a situation where law and order no longer prevail. The BUPC and CPI (M) supporters have competed with each other to take control of the area.

The political colour given to the issue of procurement of land by the opposition and the ruling party has given rise to a situation at Nandigram where innocent victims have been slaughtered in the ideology and protecting the interests of the downtrodden. The political parties instead of finding a solution to the problem have once again indulged in the blame game.

The statements given by the chief minister of West Bengal over the entire issue bears the testimony of the way in which the political mechanism works at times of crisis. Just after the firing at the rally Mr. Bhattacharjee termed the act as retaliation for months of suffering endured by the cadres of CPI (M). He alleged that even the supporters of BUPC possessed arms and used them against the cadres. The statements made by him as much as lent open support to the acts of violence. Only lately the chief minister has mellowed down in his approach towards the issue and condescended to call Nandigram a mistake.

The opposition on the other hand has been quick to pinpoint the failure of the West Bengal Government in containing the violence. Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) has left no stone unturned in telling the people that the carnage at Gujarat was hyped but hardly anyone is talking about Nandigram. What started as an agitation against the land acquisition has turned into a bloody massacre at Nandigram. The parties involved at Nandigram have by and far failed to note that an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.

R ussian President Vladimir Putin's term is coming to an end in Russia but his reign is far from over. United Russia backed by Mr. Putin has swept the polls to the state Duma (lower House of the Parliament). The mandate for united Russia is being seen as an extended mandate for President and his policies. The President of Russia is currently in his second and last term. His popularity exceeds 80 per cent. It is fuelled by a buoyant Russian economy.

The mandate is also an indication to the coming President that Mr. Putin stillcommands a huge popularity. The President is also keen to see the new President continue with his policies when he steps down next year. He said that this victory would give him a moral right to expect the same.

In view of these expectations by the Russian President the victory of United Russia is supposed to give a hold to him on the future course of Russian politics.The opposition hardly seemed to have a chance against the victorious party before the elections too. The elections were preceded by several rallies in Moscow by the opposition parties. These were a part of the opposition movement; 'The Other Russia' led by former chess champion, Gary Kasparov. In spite of all these efforts United Russia managed to sweep the polls. President Putin who termed it as a vote of confidence by the people has made it clear that he has no plans of leaving politics. President Putin seems to continue his reign even as the opposition is bent upon relinquishing it. It remains to be seen till what extent the President's agenda of exercising his hold on the political party will be fulfilled when the new President steps in next year. But for now one thing is clear that Mr. Vladimir Putin remains to be one of the most popular figures in Russian politics.

Shooting at school

India witnessed its first school shoot out on December 12. Two 14 years old boys of Euro International School situated at Gurgaon Sector-45 opened fire at their classmate Abhishek Tyagi at the school premises. The three were students of standard eight. The victim was declared dead on reaching the hospital.The boys involved in the crime claimed that Abhishekh was a bully and they wanted to take revenge. The crime was committed by a 0.32mm revolver. It was stolen by one of the 14-year-old boy who fired the first two shots and belonged to his father.The incident points towards a dangerous trend already prevalent in some of the western countries such as the US. The five rounds of firing by the boy are reminiscent of juvenile crimes committed at the campuses here.

The possession of firearms and the ease with which children can access them comes under a scanner here. The incident is an indication that India must also wake up to the possibility of such crimes, which until now were seen as a concern of western countries.