There have been many voices from within regarding Naxal massacre

BY O.J.George

It seems there have been many voices within regarding the massacre of CRPF personnel by Maoists in Dantewada and the Prime Minister is not happy about the precarious situation.

No doubt, in a democracy anyone can voice his opinion. Diverse opinions add strength to the polity. But the comments should not appear to exhibit the divisive nature of the society with regard to tackling Naxal menace.

In this regard, the BJP’s open call to Home Minister P.Chidambaram not to quit over the Dantewada massacre was an excellent overture at upholding national interests. It did not pick holes at a crucial time. The Left does not seem to be that decorous in this regard. Even today, Sitaram Yechury has been harping on the terms of the buck stopping at the Home Minister’s desk.

Earlier, West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee had not taken kindly to the reference made by Chidambaram that the buck stops at the CM’s desk regarding the massacre in West Bengal. And Chidambaram had not evaded responsibility with regard to the Dantewada attack. He had said the buck stops with his desk. With that, the Left should have stopped harping on the use of the term, buck.

We may need a more cogent approach to dealing the deadly menace of the Naxals who are exploiting poverty and lack of development in much of their embedded areas. Poor tribals are taken advantage of citing the inaction of the government in providing holistic development. Maoists themselves would not be able to solve these problems at one go, if they are given the reigns of power in these areas.

The government, on its part, should see to it that the arms of administration reach the affected areas. Otherwise, the free-run of the Maoists would continue to prevail and in future the problem would worsen to unmanageable levels. Reach out to the left-out areas and ensure prevalence of administration.