Army will not join anti-Naxalite operations: Chidambaram

The army will not be inducted for the anti-Naxal drive as its objective was not to wage a war and kill anyone but to ensure that the administration regained control of areas where rebels have their presence. This was stated by Union Home Minister P Chidambaram on Friday. He asserted that the joint operations against the Maoists would continue.

“The coordinated efforts taking place on the inter-state borders of Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and Orissa are nearly a success. In today’s review meeting, we have identified steps to be taken to further intensify the operation,” he said after meeting Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh, Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, Maharashtra Home Minister R R Patil and senior officials of the states, CRPF, BSF and ITBP at Raipur on January 22.

“The Naxalites have retreated from some places where the security forces have taken control while at some other places they are trying to engage the forces. The effort is to ensure that the security forces dominate a particular area without causing any collateral damage,” he added.

Pointing out that Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and Orissa were making coordinated efforts to contain the Naxalite menace, he said search operations were being carried out and police outposts being set up so that the civil administration could move in. “The whole purpose is to bring development—to construct schools, provide basic amenities and health facilities. The Centre has already earmarked funds for development of 33 worst-affected districts in the country,” he added.

Asked why Jharkhand did not attend the meeting, he said: “There is a new government in the state. Chief Minister Shibu Soren and senior state government officials are scheduled to visit Delhi on January 28 during which the issue would be discussed.” When attention was drawn towards Jharkhand calling off its anti-Naxal drive and the CM claiming that “nobody was a Naxal in Jharkhand and there are only some alienated people”, he said, “They are coming to Delhi. Let us discuss”.

About steps being taken to coordinate anti-Naxalite operation with Andhra Pradesh which ends up as shelter for Naxalites from Chhattisgarh, Chidambaram said: “Andhra has the best experience of fighting the Naxalites”. Asked whether he felt the Salwa Judum model could be replicated elsewhere, he said chief ministers were entitled to decide their own model.

Chidambaram described as “rubbish” the propaganda being unleashed at the international level against the ongoing joint operations and strongly condemned the Maoists for killing two children in Bastar region of Chhattisgarh. “Which ideology taught them to kill innocent tribal schoolchildren? This incident is enough to understand the true nature of menace of Naxalite ideology,” he said.

Meanwhile, under fire from all sides for halting the ground offensive against Naxalites in Jharkhand, Chief Minister Shibu Soren took a U-turn on Friday saying his government would abide by the Union Home Ministry’s guidelines against the Left extremists. “We will do what the Centre deems fit,” said Soren denying that he had ever called off operation against the Maoists. “The CM did not given any directive to anybody to bring the operations to a halt,” clarified his Principal Secretary Sukhdeo Singh in Ranchi.

Corroborating this, DGP Neyaz Ahmad and Secretary (Home) J B Tubid said in a joint press conference: “The operations against the rebels have been going on for long. There is nothing like starting or calling it off. It is still on. The security forces went on patrolling two days back in Gumla.”

Soon after taking oath as Chief Minister on December 30, Soren had said that the Maoists were his “brothers and sisters” and offered to hold talks with them. After Soren managed to wrest Home Affairs from his ally, the All Jharkhand Students’ Union, the offensive against the Maoists came to a halt with even short and long-term patrolling being withdrawn.

Soren’s flip-flop has given the Congress an issue with the party accusing the BJP of having “double standards” on the issue. AICC spokesman Manish Tewari underlined that the action of one state “would have serious implications in other states”. Embarrassed by ally Soren’s actions, BJP spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad was forced to reiterate its position that “there could not be any talks with the Naxalites unless they shunned violence”.

- Asian Tribune -