Terrorists investing in stock markets: Shinde

"It is a cliche to say that terror-funding is the lifeblood of terrorism. Credible intelligence suggests that terrorist outfits are investing in stock markets through spurious companies, setting up fictitious businesses and laundering money," Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde said, addressing the Interpol General Assembly here.

Shinde said the utmost important task was to detect the sources of such finance, including the fake currency variant, its conduits, modus-operandi and stanching its flow.

"Here again the Interpol has to play a very crucial role," he said.

The Home Minister said India has adopted a system to counter-terrorism that gives primacy to dialogue, democratic political processes and the rule of law. The country deal with terrorism within the ambit of this structure.

"Post 26/11, we have raised the level of preparedness to meet the increasingly sophisticated terrorist threats. Secondly, we have enhanced the speed and decisiveness of the response to a terrorist threat or a terrorist attack," he said.

Shinde said India's consistent and basic stand before the international community has been that there could be no justification for terrorism on any grounds: religious, political, ideological or any other.

"To be effective, the fight against terrorism has to be long term, comprehensive and sustained. Strengthening of international cooperation is vital to ensure that action is not restricted simply to the perpetrators but also encompassed States, which sponsor, support or provide safe haven to terrorists," he said.