Anti-Maoist Ops: How can the army help
Posted by Admin on August 29, 2009
…the state in fighting the naxals?
Most observers contend that the expertise earned by the Indian army in over five decades of counterinsurgency operations is not being utilised by the Indian state in its operations against Naxals. So how can the army practically help Indian government in fighting the naxals?
The most obvious — yet most difficult — way is to bring the army or the Rashtriya Rifles units directly into this fight. The government is reticent to do so for valid political reasons, and the army seems to be equally reluctant to get embroiled in another internal security battle. The portrayal of Naxals as misguided youths fighting discrimination — who have been midwifed by gross underdevelopment and state apathy — makes it extremely difficult for the government to deploy army or RR units against them.The ensuing uproar from the liberals and the leftist media against the disproportionate retaliation by the state is likely to embarrass the government; it would be an unmitigated public relations disaster for the ruling formation. The government is also perhaps correct in appraising that the nation doesn’t yet believe — and is not prepared for the eventuality — that army needs to be moved in against the naxals. Moreover, pushing for army deployment at this stage would actually prove that UPA 1.0 was an unmitigated disaster in assessing and tackling the naxal threat. Any acceptance of this brutal fact would obviously be an anathema to the Prime Minister and the Congress party. Read More>>>
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