ELECTIONS '98
COMMENTARY
SPECIALS
INTERVIEWS
CAPITAL BUZZ
REDIFF POLL
DEAR REDIFF
THE STATES
YEH HAI INDIA!
ARCHIVES

Advani calls Naxalism an enemy of development

Describing Left-wing extremist ideology as the enemy of development which tried to gain intellectual legitimacy by exploiting the plight of the poor and the weak, Union Home Minister L K Advani today suggested "a non-political and nationalist approach" based on consensus to combat Naxalism and isolate extremist organisations.

This will enable governments to deal firmly with them in accordance with the overall national action plan, he said while addressing the conference of chief ministers of Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Orissa.

The home minister also announced that a coordination centre was being set up to deal with the Naxalite problem in these states. The centre, he said, would be headed by the Union home secretary and comprise the chief secretaries and the director-generals of police of the four states.

The centre would meet every month at Hyderabad, while Advani would hold review meetings with the home ministers and the chief ministers of the states concerned at least twice a year.

Stating that Naxalism was "a crime against humanity" akin to untouchability, he said the challenge could be overcome by "energising the spirit of nationalism in our society".

The people should be educated on the threat from Naxalism and all other forms of terrorism to both internal and external security, he said.

Terrorism, Advani said, has blurred the distinctive nature of a war on the borders by making every street and every home a frontier of the nation. "It is not a coincidence that all the terrorist organisations operating in India should have not only networked themselves for the flow of arms and ammunitions and funds, but should also be in direct and indirect contact with sources that pose a threat to India's external security''.

Calling for "perfect" coordination among all the affected states and between the Centre and them, he suggested adoption of "a common perception, understanding and operational strategy" to eliminate the Naxalite menace.

For too long, India had adopted a "soft, vacillating and acquiescing" approach whenever terrorism and extremism and strong-arm tactics in general had challenged its supremacy and legitimacy. "Whenever the State has been seen to have yielded to unjustified pressure, such pressure has actually increased ten-fold as a result" and we must stop this vicious circle, he added.

He said violence was directed against democratic institutions and elected representatives with a view to terrorise the weak and extort money. The extremists were using sophisticated means to challenge the elected democratic governments, he added.

In view of the extremists's long-term strategy to weaken the democratic governments, Advani said it was necessary for all political parties to arrive at a consensus to deal with this threat to the democratic system.

"A message has to go from the nation that it will deal strongly with anyone who challenges its foundation and integrity," he added.

Calling for a "broader and deeper" outlook towards the problem, Advani said the hypothesis that faster development lessened the incidence of extremism was at best, only a "partial truth". The bigger half of the truth was extremism hinders development, he added.

While combating the menace, he said the Centre and the states concerned should accelerate development and simultaneously take decisive and concerted security measures against the perpetrators of violence.

"Unwavering" and "sustained" political will was the most critical element in the task of elimination of extremism, he said.

The Union home minister blamed certain intellectual and media circles for frequently romanticising Naxalism. The sole aim of some forces was to give legal and media protection to Naxalite organisations. The widespread feeling of frustration and disenchantment in the student and youth community was deftly exploited by extremist ideologies as a ground for recruitment of potential activists, he added.

Political parties, social, cultural and teachers organisations, student and youth bodies, intelligentsia and the media should be mobilised "to cut the few roots of legitimacy still left in our social soil in which the tree of Naxalism still rests and thrives", he said.

Advani said the BJP-led coalition government at the Centre had committed itself to remove the sense of insecurity ( bhay), hunger ( bhook), poverty and corruption ( brashtachar) to inculcate a sense of confidence among people, increase their faith in democracy and the rule of law.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, his Madhya Pradesh counterpart Digvijay Singh, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Gopinath Munde, officials from Orissa, Union Home Secretary B P Singh, Special Secretary, Home, Nikhil Kumar, Intelligence Bureau director Shyamlal Datta and Central Reserve Police Force Director-General M N Sabharwal, besides DGPs from the four states, participated in the meeting.

The meeting is expected to discuss, among other things, setting up of a joint-command to deal with the Naxalite violence in the four contiguous states.

UNI

Tell us what you think of this report