Policing The Gods

In Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh DGP R.M. Shukla said that the disputed structures at Varanasi, Mathura and Ayodhya were already well-protected for the last several years and so there were no immediate fears for them. In Delhi, police commissioner R.S. Gupta said that certain "intelligence inputs" had necessitated additional deployment. As a result, the capital's well-known places of worship were practically under siege. Devotees had a tough time entering the precincts of the Chhattarpur temple complex, the iskcon temple, Bahai temple, Malai Mandir, Laxmi Narayan temple and the popular Hanuman temple complexes in Connaught Place and Yamuna Bazaar.

Police forces were also deployed outside major gurudwaras, churches, mosques, Buddhist monasteries and Jain temples, providing the most extensive protective cover that religious places have ever received in the last few decades.

But Delhi was the only place to see an extensive security cover. In Orissa's Konark temple at Puri, some pilgrims said that a "few lathi-wielding men" may not be enough to tackle professional and heavily-armed killers.

Intelligence estimates, however, say that though there has been an immediate deployment, the main question is how long security would continue. "It would be unrealistic to say that all temples would be guarded for all time. In addition, there is scarcely any input on whether places of worship would be attacked," says an IB official.

In Delhi, intelligence officials have told the home ministry that there would have had to be advanced planning before the hit on the Swaminarayan temple took place. The planning could have taken anywhere from 10 days to two weeks; a reconnaissance mission would have first identified the temple complex, and a team of at least 7-10 people, including some locals, would have been involved in the logistical planning. The role of some isi "nodules" present in Ahmedabad too could not be ruled out. Security, too, therefore, would have to match such levels of preparation.