BJP for unified tactics against Maoists

NEW DELHI: The BJP has cautioned the Centre that the Maoist menace is getting “bigger by the day”, and that it needs a much more “concerted and unified strategy” by the states and the Union Go

NEW DELHI: The BJP has cautioned the Centre that the Maoist menace is getting “bigger by the day”, and that it needs a much more “concerted and unified strategy” by the states and the Union Government to tackle it.

The Opposition outfit also flayed Union Home Minister P Chidambaram over his alleged wrong depiction of the nature of the threat posed by the left-wing extremism.

 “Chidambaram is saying that this is a law and order issue. This is not an issue of one state and it is not a law and order matter. It is a national issue,” said BJP spokesperson Prakash Javadekar. Continuing in the same vein, Javadekar called for a unified strategy to tackle the Maoist menace.

“Unless we have a concerted and unified strategy to deal with the problem (Maoist menace) and the best of coordination among the states and the Centre, the situation may drift out of hands,” he said.

Referring to the recent kidnapping of a District Collector by the Maoists in Chhattisgarh, the BJP leader said there was an apparent shift in the extremists’ strategy “wherein they were targeting foreign tourists, political leaders in the states and government officials”.

“This is really a warning for India. It is an attack on our sovereignty and the government must view it in this perspective. It is a multi-state problem… We are going to vigorously raise the matter in Parliament,” he said.

On the Chhattisgarh abduction, the BJP spokesperson said that the state government was doing everything it could, to secure the early release of the IAS officer. “But we should not lose sight of the fact that we need a national, unified approach to tame the Naxal menace,” he added.

Separately, Javadekar sought clarification from the Centre on the Additional Solicitor General’s controversial submission in Supreme Court,  subsequently disowned by the External Affairs Ministry (MEA), that the Italian ship Enrica Lexie involved in the killing of two Indian fishermen off the Kerala coast should not have been detained.

Alleging that there was a conspiracy by “vested interests” to save the Italian  Marines suspected of killing the fishermen, the BJP spokesperson said,“We want to raise the question as to what was the compulsion for the ASG and the Law Officer of the country to plead the case of the Italians instead of Indians.” “What was the compulsion and who put pressure on the ASG, who briefed him and on whose briefing he made such a statement.”

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