Smita Narula, associate professor of clinical law and faculty director of the Law School’s Center for Human Rights and Global Justice, spoke to Australian ABC Radio’s National Religion Report about the recent terror attacks in Mumbai.
"I think we need to wait a little bit before we can really draw conclusions on whether or not the attacks were orchestrated from outside," she said. "The Indian government has a record now of pointing the finger immediately to Pakistan whenever any internal violence of this kind takes place, and has in many instances had to eat its words later on when the facts came to light that it actually was a domestic issue," she said.
Specifically discussing the attacks in the context of communal violence between Hindus and Muslims, Narula noted a pattern of violent backlash against Muslims after episodes of violence blamed on Islamic militants and terrorism.
Narula said she was disturbed by references to the attacks as "India’s 9/11." "This use of this language is writing a blank check, so to speak, for the government to say, ‘Well, we need to behave in the way the United States behaved post 9/11 and we have a right to defend ourselves and to use all means necessary to do that, including ways that trample on human rights.'"