Indian held in France a SIMI member: Chidambaram

Chidambaram said that the Indian government was getting regular updates from the French authorities on the case. However,it was too early to decide whether New Delhi would ask for consular access to him. Chidambaram said according to information with the intelligence agencies,Rashid was a well-educated person,“probably a mechanical engineer”,and “very well acquainted with technology”. He is said to have moved to France on an employment visa in 2008.

“By that time he was already a highly-trained activist with a militant bent of mind. He was on the radar of our intelligence agencies,” Chidambaram said.

He last travelled to India six months ago,and during his stay was constantly under watch of the Indian authorities. He is believed to have travelled extensively in the southern part of the country,but the security agencies did not find anything “alarming or suspicious” against him then.

The Home Minister said there was no known instance of Rashid having recruited any Indian to the terror network. The latest revelations on Rashid came on a day the government held a review meeting of the security situation in the country in the wake of the terror attack in Pakistan. While the gunbattle in Pakistan’s key naval base in Karachi continued,the Cabinet Secretariat convened a high-level meeting of all the intelligence agencies and top security officers to take stock of the situation and the likely implications for the country.

After the meeting,all the states were told to intensify their vigil and guard against suspicious activities,sources said. Security has been further beefed up around military and strategic installations and places of worship. “We are not happy to see the kind of incidents happening in Pakistan,” said Chidambaram.