On board INS Vikramaditya, Rajnath Singh says terror threat along India’s coastline from 'nefarious neighbour' remains a possibility

INS Vikramaditya: The threat of terror incidents along the Indian coastline remains and a neighbouring country is involved in “nefarious” actions to destabilise India, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Sunday. Singh was speaking to reporters on board the aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya which is currently sailing along India’s western coastline. Asked about terror threats along the country’s coastline, the defence minister said, “Any country in the world should have adequate security for itself. We cannot rule out any possibilities (of terror threats).” “As far as our neighbouring country is concerned, you know very well that to destabilise and to break India up, it keeps taking nefarious actions,” Singh said in an apparent reference to Pakistan. During his overnight stay on the INS Vikramaditya, Singh witnessed various military exercises involving submarines, frigates and the carrier.

Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh onboard INS Vikramaditya: We know it very well that Pakistan uses terrorism as a tool to destabilise India. We cannot forget 26/11 and if there was a lapse then it can't be repeated. Our Navy and Coast Guard are always on alert. pic.twitter.com/eucwpPXrZk

— ANI (@ANI) September 29, 2019

“I can say this with complete belief that our Indian Navy has a solid and attentive presence here for maritime security. There is not an iota of doubt,” Singh said, adding that a Mumbai-like incident cannot be allowed to recur. “We cannot forget what happened on 26/11 (the Mumbai attack). If some mistake has happened once, it must not be repeated again at any cost. Therefore, our Indian Navy and Coast Guard always remain vigilant,” he said. On the Army Chief’s statement that terrorists have again come into play in Pulwama, Singh said,“No one needs to guess what will happen to the terrorists if they are in the country.” Not only in India, the whole world knows what will happen to terrorists, the defence minister said. Singh, after a yoga session on the aircraft carrier early Sunday morning, said yoga has been accepted not only in India but across the world. “It has got international recognition, and the credit goes to Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” he said. “He presented this resolution (on Yoga) at the United Nations and it received the support of 177 countries. In almost all countries, there is a substantial population, which practices yoga,” the defence minister said.