No place for Left Wing Extremism violence in ‘self-reliant’ India: Shah

PTI, Feb 8, 2023, 9:13 AM IST

Union Home Minister Amit Shah has said there is no place for violence and Left Wing Extremism ideas in the ”self-reliant New India” under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Chairing a meeting of the Parliamentary Consultative Committee of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Tuesday, he said the ministry’s policy in dealing with Left Wing Extremism (LWE) has three main pillars — strategy to curb violence with a ruthless approach, better coordination between the Centre and states, and eliminating support for extremists through public participation in development.

Shah said the Modi government has adopted a policy of zero tolerance towards LWE and all kinds of violence.

There is no place for violence and LWE ideas in the ”self-reliant New India” under the leadership of Modi, he said.

The home minister said the three-pronged strategy has given historic success in curbing LWE in the last eight years.

He said for the first time after nearly four decades, in 2022, the number of deaths of civilians and security forces has been brought under 100, and there is a 76 per cent reduction in violent incidents related to LWE in 2022 in comparison to 2010.

Besides, the number of civilian and security personnel who lost their lives in LWE incidents has come down by 90 per cent to 98 in 2022 in comparison to 1,005 in 2010, and the number of LWE-affected districts fell to 45 from 90.

He said the MHA is determined to destroy the entire ecosystem of LWE by financial choking.

The BSF air wing has been strengthened with the induction of new pilots and engineers in the last one year to aid operations in LWE-affected areas and save the lives of the country’s soldiers, he said. Shah said the Modi dispensation has made several successful efforts for better coordination with governments of LWE-affected states without any party or ideology-related bias.

The Modi government is providing funds for modernisation of state police forces and assistance related to construction of fortified police stations in the affected states without any discrimination, he said.

The minister added that security as well as accelerated development in LWE-affected areas is the main focus of the government’s policy and it is taking several steps for the all-round development of these areas.