‘The Naxalites will die a painful death’

Orissa CM Naveen Patnaik tells BIBHUTI PATI that a police boat was sunk by Naxal rebels only by accident


You have often said the state government was fully geared to handle the Naxal menace?

This is nothing but terrorism. The attack was brutal. In the name of helping the poor, the Naxalites are murdering innocents in manner that is nothing but barbaric.

But if Greyhound soldiers cannot handle the Naxal firepower, do you think the state’s police force stands a chance?

It was an accident. Terrorist activities can take place anywhere in the country. That does not mean the state’s police force is not competent. We have launched a modernisation programme for the police. I recently had a discussion with Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil on this very issue.

Many are saying the Naxalites are now better trained and have better weapons?

No, I do not think so. I have told you it’s terrorism and incidents like these can happen anywhere in the country.

Which are the troubled zones in Orissa where the Naxalites have a distinct upper hand?

The undivided Koraput district is a major trouble zone. The Naxals have recently spread their wings to western Orissa because people living there are poor, illiterate and innocent. We are making efforts to reach out to the poor. I would say the situation is now gradually changing in our favour. In some places, the Maoists are losing their turf. But if you are seeking a big change overnight, that will not happen. The Naxalites have no specific operation zone and keep shifting from place to place.

With the Salva Judum coming under fire, is this counterviolence the only way to solve the crisis?

Who told you that the Salva Judum is not working? But I must say I don’t believe in counter-violence. But if they take law and order in their hands, then they will have to face the music. I cannot let my men die like this.

The rebels have been fighting for more than three decades in several Indian states, demanding land and jobs. Is it not an issue the state governments need to understand?

They have chosen a very wrong path. I do not think violence will solve any problem. Who told you that they are working for agriculture labourers and the poor? In our state, there are several examples of how the Maoists have brutally killed many poor people and farmers. Is brutality the only way to fight for a good cause and help the poor? The state governments, which are often attacked by the media, have programmes for the poor. What package are the Naxalites offering to the landless? We are gaining in many places. Have you noticed how we have got many top Maoists leaders, including women, to surrender and work for governmental programmes?

Over the past few years, about 2,000 people — including policemen, militants and civilians — have been killed.

In the last couple of years, the state police has had a number of successful operations where we have busted Naxalite hideouts and confiscated arms. We have destroyed hundreds of Maoists camps and arrested some of their top leaders. No one writes a line about it. I am confident that once modernisation seeps in poverty-stricken areas, the Maoists and their great theories of helping the poor will die a painful death