Former Interior Minister and Chairman
Institute of Research and Reforms (IRR) Senator A. Rehman Malik has urged the
International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA) to take serious notice of continuous nuclear proliferation by
India and probe into the incidents on urgent basis. He suggested the IAEA chief
to call an emergency meeting inviting western countries cautioning about this
new trend by India to bring uranium as one of the business commodities, being
traded openly by private dealers.
In a letter to Mr. Rafael Mariano Grossi, Director General International Atomic
Energy Agency, he said “I would like to draw your kind attention to the
combined seizure of 7.1 kg of highly enriched uranium from two citizens of
India namely Jigar Jayesh Pandya and Abu Tahir Afzal Husain Choudhary, a scrap
dealer, on 6 May 2021 in Mumbai”. He writes that it was not the first time that
such a highly radioactive substance has been seized by police in recent years
but in 2016; Indian police seized almost 9 kg (19.8 lbs) of depleted uranium in
the Thane area of Maharashtra. He says,
it is, thus, evident that India has been found involved in illicit nuclear
proliferation activities and uranium theft, as there is a history of
unauthorised possession of radioactive material in India.
Making the letter public at a press
conference, Rehman Malik said the present incident and many other incidents
which have not yet been reported must be an eye-opener for the IAEA, as it has
further endangered nuclear security especially when it is in the hands of an
irresponsible extremist government in India. He stressed that timely warning
and necessary legal action will enable to stop the Indian nuclear products from
landing in the hands of terrorists. He urged that world must stop this new wave
and mode of terrorism of these dirty bombs which will be too dangerous for the
world and will frustrate all modern measures against terrorism.
He writes that the theft of uranium and its
subsequent sale to unauthorised customers is not only dangerous for India, its
neighbors but to whole world. He added
that seizure of enriched uranium from unauthorised persons in India has raised
eyebrows in the world vis-à-vis the safety measures in place in India. “Although India is not a signatory to
Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), yet it was able to secure a waiver from IAEA
owing to its supposedly falsely reported ‘excellent record in nuclear
security”, he added.
For the proposed probe into sale of uranium
in India, Rehman Malik in his letter has proposed some important points to save
the world from the dirty bomb in the hands of terrorists. Those points include:
1.
A
detailed investigation by IAEA because the present BJP government is controlled
by extremists and cannot be trusted.
2.
All
previous incidents of nuclear proliferation inside India needs to be made
public as India always muted such incidents.
3.
The
IAEA may call an emergency meeting inviting western countries cautioning about
this new trend by India to bring uranium as one of the business commodities,
being traded openly by private dealers. As a politician, I am sorry to note the
double standards of the world community when it comes to Pakistan. There has not been any reaction yet either
from the UN, IAEA, or the international community including the USA over the
incidents of seizure of uranium from private citizens of India.
4.
I
request to refer the case of nuclear proliferation to FATF under your signature
as it is too serious to be ignored and allowed to endanger the world as it is
too serious issue and a bigger dirty bomb is bigger threat than actual
terrorism and money laundering.
5. It is high time that the safety measures adopted by India to safeguard the nuclear material against proliferation are reviewed by IAEA and the waiver granted to it is withdrawn forthwith, and in the meantime, a total freeze on the operation of these nuclear plants may be imposed.
6. All materials and equipment that was made available to India or resulting from the assistance provided to it under a comprehensive safeguards agreement should be sealed by the IAEA, and the IAEA should take over immediately for its safe custody. If India still refuses to comply, then any international military aid to India by other UN member states may be suspended and sanctions on the nuclear plants and staff are ordered under sanctions.
7. Kindly consider asking India as to why it has failed deliberately to report these gross violations to IAEA, hence India owes an explanation to the international community as to why it has failed under the law to report these matters.
8. India must be urged immediately to report this theft of Uranium within a given deadline. The other seizures must also be reported with private dealing in uranium to IAEA’s Incidents & Tracking Database (ITDB) after carrying out a thorough investigation under the supervision of members of the IAEA.
Chairman IRR Rehman Malik explains that the
seizure of such a quantity of nuclear material from unauthorised persons speaks
itself about the so-called claims of fool-proof safety of the Indian nuclear
programme. “I am a close observer and familiar with nuclear-associated issues
as I have remained a member of the National Control and command Authority of
Pakistan being Interior Minister of Pakistan for five years” his letter reads.
He mentioned that in one of the international
programmes of IAEA on nuclear proliferation in 2011 in Islamabad, wherein he
was chief guest, he had warned the world about the Indian nuclear faulty
security system having inadequate safety and security which is a matter of
record. He stressed that the nuclear programme in India is in the hands of
irresponsible and inexperienced civilians and the extremist government which is
being governed by RSS who have their unethical motives in contrast to
Pakistan’s outstanding nuclear safety and security record duly verified by the
international monitoring watchdog.
Rehman Malik maintained that India has been a
customer of the nuclear black market and it has become now business which means
the supply of death by providing nuclear material for dirty bombs. He
emphasized that unless India strictly regulates nuclear material, it would be
considered complicit in the proliferation of nuclear material. He explains that
under Article 39 of the UN Charter, it constitutes a direct threat to
international peace and security, if a country is found to be noncompliant with
its safeguards. Such loose state control shows that the India has to go a long
way to become a responsible nuclear power and made member of NSG, he adds.
In his letter to IAEA chief, Rehman Malik
pens that track record of India shows that it has been a customer in the
nuclear black market and proliferation of nuclear material cannot happen
without the active connivance of State operators hence India has proved itself
as an irresponsible state. He added that India has to prove its credibility by
enhancing the internal administration and security of its nuclear plants and
also needs to bring stringent legislation by enhancing punishment on nuclear
proliferation. The private dealing with uranium has to be prohibited otherwise
every dirty bomb in the hands of terrorists and every non-state actor will be
worse than Osama Bin Laden and Daesh, he concluded.
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