PUDR condemns the Central Governments admission of its ‘arrest or kill’ policy against Naxalites, before the Standing Committee on Home Affairs by the Home Secretary, Mr. R.K. Singh on April 4, 2012.

From the time, that the Prime Minister first identified ‘Left Wing Extremism’ as the single largest threat, to the massive deployment of paramilitary forces in anti-naxal operations under the code-named Operation Green Hunt, to the latest disclosure, there can be very little doubt over the fact that when it comes to Maoists, the Indian State does not believe in respecting its commitments to constitutional norms concerning lives and liberties of its citizens.

Fact findings conducted in Chattisgarh, Jharkhand, Orissa and West Bengal by PUDR and other democratic rights organizations have pointed to cases of increasing intimidation, arrests, torture, custodial rape, targeted killings and encounters in the course of Operation Green Hunt. To date, none of the officials perpetuating such crimes have been brought to trial. In fact Governments have gone out of their way to award some senior officials like Ankit Garg SP of Dantewada, on whose orders Soni Sori, a tribal accused of being a Maoist was raped and tortured, with Gallantry medals.

Despite the Planning Commission’s own report on the social roots of Maoism, the Indian State has persisted with military suppression and refused to back down from its savage war for development.

The latest admission brings out the nature of the ‘dirty war’ being fought by the Government to benefit corporatist development. It also brings out the hypocrisy of the parliament and the opinion-makers who acquiesce, if not sanction, policy of individual annihilation by the government forces.

Paramjeet Singh and Preeti Chauhan
Secretaries
pudr@pudr.org