Hyderabad: Director-General of Police Anurag Sharma said on Wednesday that deradicalisation of youngsters can be effectively done with the help of their own families and community members.
The DGP denied that Hyderabad was more vulnerable to radicalisation of youths by the terror group ISIS. It can happen anywhere, he said. Police would take stern action if people with such ideologies cross the line.
Answering questions about the arrest of three city-based youngsters at Nagpur, and the possibility of Hyderabad being more prone to ISIS propaganda, Mr Sharma said: “Radicalisation can happen anywhere. The only thing is that we are detecting those cases.”
The DGP said that a total of 20 youngsters, who were attracted to ISIS propaganda through social media, were counselled by the police during the year. “We are keeping a close watch on such persons. We knew about these youngsters, and that’s how we could keep track of them,” he said.
He said the two youngsters, Abdullah Basith and Maaz Hassan, were counselled when they were caught the last time, but the duo must have been frustrated due to restrictions placed by their parents.
“We had told their parents to look after them. The parents went one step ahead and took away their cellphones and I think that frustrated them a bit,” he said. Mr Sharma said, “The community and the parents are definitely against any such movements which itself goes to say that the maximum influence can come only from the community as well as the family.”
