The challenge of terrorism must be faced squarely and resolutely by all shades of political opinion. There can be no political compromise with terror. No inch conceded. No compassion shown. The people of India have suffered a great deal at the hands of terrorists and ourgovernment and I am sure, I speak for all the Chief Ministers represented here, is resolute in itsdetermination to wipe out this threat to a civilized and democratic way of life. There are no good terrorists and bad terrorists. There is no cause, root or branch, that can ever justify the killing of innocent people. No democraticgovernment can tolerate the use of violence against innocent people and against the functionaries of a duly established democraticgovernment.
Extremism is not merely a Law and Order issue. This we recognize. Development, or rather the lack of it, often has a critical bearing, as do exploitation and iniquitous socio-political circumstances. Inadequate employment opportunities, lack of access to resources, under developed agriculture, artificially depressed wages, geographical isolation, lack of effective land reforms may all impinge significantly on the growth of extremism. There may be other more complex issues like language, ethnicity, caste or religion or cultural rights. In this complex world, that we live in, all these facets have to be taken into account in evolving a concerted and effective strategy to counter these challenges.
Whatever be the cause, it is difficult to deny that extremism has huge societal costs. Investments are unlikely to fructify, employment is not likely to grow and educational facilities may be impaired. Direct costs would include higher costs of infrastructure creation as contractors build "extortions" into their estimates, consumers may be hurt due to erratic supplies and artificial levies. In all, the society at large and people at large suffer.
Delivery systems are often the first casualty. Schools do not run, dispensaries do not open and PDS shops remain closed. Public service providers can now ascribe all their inefficiencies to "extremism". In many cases, "extremist" areas also appear to be closely associated with a lack of strong participatory mechanism. Panchayats in these areas, are generally weak and even where they do exist, not enough powers are delegated. Panchayats are important from another angle. They create room for political action - by mainstream political parties, by NGOs and civil society. Generally, traditional headmen and village institutions are treated with respect even by extremists. Ideologically driven movements do exploit the vacant spaces caused by the absence of mainstream political formations at the grass roots level.
When genuine dissent becomes extremism there can be no ambivalence about tackling it, even if it be only symptomatic. The Chief Ministers, I urge, should recognise these different facets of the security threats we face and develop effective policies designed to address them. Our citizens are free to choose the particular brand of politics they wish to follow, they have the freedom to take recourse to collective action to achieve the social, political or economic changes that they desire, but no one is either permitted or expected to resort to violence to achieve these ends or to try and prevent elected functionaries from doing what they are supposed to do. This should be made amply clear in our policy announcements. Talks and negotiations should always be welcomed. I have repeatedly stressed that we are ready to talk to any group that abjures violence.
But the basic issues regarding violence and the State’s obligations to curb it, should be clarified at the outset, so that there are no misunderstandings or a feeling of being let down at later stages. In our country, symbols and gestures matter. Nothing should be done which detracts from the authority of the Indian state and its primary role as an upholder of public order. The State should not even remotely be seen to back away in the face of threats of armed violence. We need to be firm, but not transgress the limits of human rights or dignity. We must prevent our society from being brutalised. However, legitimate needs and aspirations, even if set out in procedurally or presentationally inappropriate terms, should be examined with care and with sympathy because we are dealing after all, with our own people, even though they may have strayed from the path of rectitude.
You, represent both political and administrative leadership. We must, therefore, do all we can, to evolve the required policies, frame the action programmes and deliver the outputs. This is our common goal, this is our common objective. We must empathise with the underlying causes and be able to tactfully handle the strong feeling arising out of long-standing deprivation or neglect of certain regions or certain classes. But we should also be uncompromising in our resolve, to uphold the position of the duly electedgovernments. The need for a focussed, compact, multi disciplinary group to handle such a complex issue, cannot be over-emphasized. This group both at the official level and at the political level, should have strong political leadership and backing and should, under all circumstances, have direct access to the highest political executive.
I have repeatedly emphasized the importance of good governance. This entails effective, if humane maintenance of law and order and efficient policing. I urge your Conference to also deliberate upon the need for police reforms. A well-trained, sensitive, citizen-friendly, but, firm police force is a necessary element of good governance. Thegovernment has at its disposal the wisdom of many committees of enquiry and study on police reforms. I urge Chief Ministers to give the recommendations of existing committees utmost importance and initiate the required reform, in training, in service conditions, in career progression, in technical support and, finally, in depoliticising to the maximum extent possible, the functioning of our police forces.
I must pay tribute to the courage, the dedication and commitment of our police and other security forces, especially in parts of the country that have been disturbed byanti-national and anti-social forces. I salute the courage and commitment of the security forces in our border States where they have had to deal with cross-border infiltration by extremist elements .