Azamgarh: Den of terror or victim of backwardness?

Azamgarh: Den of terror or victim of backwardness?

Manjari Mishra & Binay Singh,TNN

23 Sep 2008, 0037 hrs IST,

"The entire drama in Delhi was stage managed," said Dr Iftikhar Ahmed, principal of Shibli College, once a noted centre for secular learning. Atif, who was killed in the encounter, was just out of high school. "Do you think a lad of 18-19, who barely stepped out of Azamgarh, would suddenly become such a dreaded terrorist within months of reaching Delhi?" he asked. The government, he said, was under "POTA pressure". "They are simply trying to prove that even without POTA they can achieve a lot, and these youngsters have become scapegoats in this murky politics," he argued.

http://www.newageislam.com/azamgarh--den-of-terror-or-victim-of-backwardness?/islam,terrorism-and-jihad/d/794