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New Delhi: Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh Friday warned against the danger of
terrorism becoming "an internal intruding problem" and underlined
that if Maoism is not curbed, India will have to bid goodbye to to
its ambitions of 10-11 percent annual growth.
"We must also recognize that today I think there are dangers that
terrorism can become an internal intruding problem as well," Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh told probationers of the Indian Police
Service (IPS).
"This is one area which requires very sensitive handling and I
would urge you to devise credible effective strategies to deal
with this very sensitive issue," he said.
Differentiating between terrorism emanating from outside, a veiled
reference to cross-border terror outfits, the prime minister said
it was not easy to deal with home-grown terror.
"If it is terrorism driven by outside forces or sent to our
country it is in some way it is easy (to tackle)," he stressed.
"But if the terror modules are to be found in our country and some
misguided elements of our society take to that path, I think we
have to tackle this problem with all the sensitivity that it
requires," he said.
Saying that the tribal areas were in the grip of the Maoist
menace, Manmohan Singh also stressed that unless this is
controlled, India will have to "say goodbye" to its ambitions of
sustaining a growth rate of 10-11 percent per annum.
"Naxalite violence is yet another problem and Naxalism (Maoism)
today afflicts the central India parts where the bulk of India's
mineral wealth lies. If we don't control Naxalism, we have to say
goodbye to our country's ambitions to sustain a growth rate of
10-11 percent per annum as we all need and as we all aspire that
that is the only way that we can rid of chronic poverty, ignorance
and disease that still afflict millions and millions of our
citizens."
The prime minister, however, called for greater sensitivity in
dealing with Maoism, saying the people of tribal areas fall easy
prey because of disaffection, for which the root causes are social
and economic.
"What causes this disaffection? Why some elements of the tribal
societies take to that path? They become an easy prey to the
Naxalite propaganda", he said while asking the probationers men to
study of the issue in-depth and devise credible strategies to deal
with the scourge.
The prime minister also reminded the probationers to operate
within the ambit of the law in dealing with with terror-related
cases and asked them to avoid third degree methods.
"I think as citizens of our country, we must devise ways and means
of conducting our inquiries by the police and other entities
without use of third degree methods. We must respect the rights of
our citizens", he said.
Manmohan Singh said that until conviction, everybody should be
regarded as innocent. "That's the basic philosophy of our system.
These are some of the concerns that I have", he said.
In his speech, the prime minister repeatedly stressed on India's
cultural and religious diversity and asked the probationers to
prepare to deal with "the virus of communalism".
He also spoke candidly about roots of urban crime in
socio-economic inequality, saying even if "we are getting growth
rates of 8-9 percent per annum, there are people who believe they
are left out".
"When they are left out, I think the grievances against the system
multiply and some of them take the form of challenging the
authority of law and order," he pointed out.
Manmohan Singh also underlined the need for a strategy of
inclusive development, saying that the police must ensure that
atrocities against Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and other
vulnerable sections are not allowed to get out of hand.
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