[Reader-list] The Naxalites overreached

[Rakesh Iyer]

Dear Pawan

This is highly atrocious of you to state things without even understanding
the ground realities. You are talking of crushing the Maoists. Such crushing
is only possible if we completely bomb out the area. Are you thinking of
that? In other words, are you going to create an Afghanistan or Vietnam
within India?

You can't identify who is a Naxal from who is not a Naxal in the villages.
The Naxals don't wear a uniform. You don't have intelligence on how they
conduct their operations. You don't even have an idea of how many people are
there as Naxalites. Neither are you willing to look at the causes of how
tribals become Naxalites. You don't try to address the real issues like
poverty, lack of employment and displacement of tribals. Neither do you
ensure administrative, police or judicial reforms. And then, without doing
anything of this, you agree to using force against your own citizens and
fellow human beings.

You talk about Kashmir. People like you have forgotten that Kashmiri
separatists are still there because people don't trust the Indian state. To
ensure that India wins Kashmir for once and for all, a mass slaughter of all
Kashmiri Muslims would have to be organized. Are you ready for that? If you
can't accept that to Kashmiri Pandits, would you accept that for Kashmiri
Muslims? Or are you communal or strategically minded to pursue gains only
for your community?

All those here talking about crushing the Maoists or separatists or
terrorists. Remember this. All counter-insurgency measures across the world
have been a failure with the exception of one, as told by a professor to me.
This one was in Malaysia, where the British successfully fought the
Communist insurgencies. How? Simple. Instead of confronting the insurgency
militarily, they strengthened the development and administrative machinery.
They won over the people. Result was that the insurgency was successfully
defeated.

All others, be it Kashmir or anti-Naxal operations, have failed and failed
most miserably. You may not care, but I care about the soldiers who reside
in Kashmir only to develop psychiatric disorders and coming out to home and
not able to lead lives peacefully. Now the army also complains of stresses
in Kashmir. Aren't they too human beings?

Find where the problem lies. Understand who is creating violence, and why,
for then it becomes easier to counter him/her.

Rakesh