Maoists trying to hit India's electoral process: Experts
08 February, 2007
Raipur, Feb 8 (ANI): Serving and retired Indian Police Service (IPS) officers of the country feel that the reason for Maoist insurgency becoming the biggest internal security threat as perceived by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, is that they are trying to hit the very base of the democracy-- elections.
Discussing the dimensions of the threat by Maoists at a conference titled 'Maoist Insurgency: Assessment of the Threat and Doctrine and Strategies of Response' here on Thursday, they said that the ultimate goal of the insurgents was to take over power.
"The main Naxal groups feel that elections are a barrier to their movement, and this is why they always call for boycotting any election. Although they have failed to trouble polls for the Parliament and State Assemblies, but they have successfully targeted local body polls," said former CBI Director K Vijaya Rama Rao. Asserting that attacks on political leadership was the most serious threat of this insurgency, Rao advised the Maoists to lay down their guns, saying that the "road to power was through the ballot, not bullet".
Endorsing Rao's words, senior journalist Srinivas Reddy said that besides politicians, the country's railway network was also facing a major threat from the Maoists. The insurgents want people's attention and in order to get it, they have been repeatedly attacking and hijacking trains, he said.
Former Andhra Pradesh DGP HJ Dora called for strengthening the police force of the country, saying that there was no reason why police could not be better equipped and trained to tackle the fast-spreading menace, which was essentially a movement against the democratic set-up. The Jharkhand ADG of Police termed survival of the democracy in the wake of Maoist insurgency as a great challenge.
He said that besides being a major threat to the development of an area, the young minds in the affected states were also being polluted and getting drawn towards Naxalism. (ANI)
Link
Labels: CPI(Maoist), News
posted by Bimal 8.2.07,
