New Delhi, August 13, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
BJP MP Harsh Vardhan Shringla on Thursday backed a UN report linking last year’s Red Fort suicide car bombing to Al-Qaida in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), while raising concerns over the security risks posed by the porous India-Bangladesh border.
The UN Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team’s report on terrorism to the Security Council said the Red Fort blast, which killed 11 people last November, “was officially attributed to AQIS”. The report also warned that AQIS was emerging as a decentralised terrorist organisation from a disparate group.
Reacting to the findings, Shringla said India should take seriously any attempt by AQIS to establish links within the country, including with those allegedly responsible for the Red Fort attack.
“If they have said that AQIS is trying to establish links in India, including with the people who are responsible for the blast at the Red Fort, then of course, we have to take it with a certain level of seriousness,” Shringla said.
He added that India must ensure terrorist organisations are not allowed to carry out activities in the country.
Shringla, a former Foreign Secretary and former Indian Ambassador to the US and Bangladesh, said the UN Security Council has a “very comprehensive team of experts” specialising in counter-terrorism and terrorist organisations.
“These are people who are specialists in counter-terrorism, who are specialists in dealing with terrorist organisations, and so they do a lot of research, they do a lot of investigation on these issues,” he said.
The former envoy also expressed concern over developments in Bangladesh. His remarks came after the UN report stated that there was concern about AQIS attempting to exploit Bangladesh to establish cells there.
Shringla blamed the former government of Chief Adviser Mohammed Yunus for what he described as a rise in extremist and terrorist activity in Bangladesh. He alleged that the previous government had released wanted terrorists and created an environment conducive to extremist groups taking root.
He also claimed that Jamaat-e-Islami continues to have “considerable influence” in Bangladesh and warned that militants could potentially enter India through the porous border.
“Because of the porous borders, these people can enter India, so we have to be very careful and vigilant that our security and integrity is not compromised,” he said.
Shringla also stressed the need for India to work with Bangladeshi authorities, saying it was in Bangladesh’s interest as well to prevent terrorists from operating from its territory.
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