ABSTRACT
India is no stranger to terrorism. Terrorist acts, including arson, armed attacks, assassinations, bombings, hostage-taking, hijackings, kidnappings, etc., have been a regular occurrence across the country, particularly since the early-1980s. During the past three decades, the country has seen some of the highest number of civilian deaths anywhere in the world. 1 The states of Jammu & Kashmir and Punjab in the north, the seven north-eastern states and a wide swath of territory in the central region of the country have been the worst affected. The central government in India does not distinguish between the terms militancy, insurgency and terrorism, sometimes using them interchangeably. Its Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) is the nodal agency dealing with internal security matters. The MHA describes the violent actions of all armed groups active in the states of Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab and the north-east and in the east-central and south-central region of India as terrorism (Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India 2015a).
