Bhopal: Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel on Sunday ruled out any possibility of withdrawing security forces from insurgency-hit Bastar, saying, such a move “may prove suicidal.”
“There is no proposal to withdraw paramilitary forces from Bastar. It may prove suicidal if forces are moved out of the region,” he said.
Mr Baghel, however, said the Maoist problem facing the state could alone be tackled through talks, not with the bullet-for-bullet strategy, as was adopted by the previous Raman Singh government. “Bullet-for-bullet strategy cannot solve the Naxal problem. Maoists have expanded their base from merely three blocks to 15 districts in Chhattisgarh due to the strategy adopted by the previous state government,” he added.
“Chhattisgarh has witnessed second largest deployment of paramilitary forces after Jammu and Kashmir in the country. Despite this, Chhattisgarh could not be made free of Naxal influence. This clearly indicates that social-economic-political way is the alternative route to solve the problem,” he added.
Around 70,000 personnel of various central paramilitary forces including CRPF, BSF and ITBP, besides the state police, have been deployed in Bastar.
The chief minister, who is likely to expand his Cabinet on December 25, hinted at evolving a new strategy to deal with the vexed issue. Sections of people affected by Maoist violence such as tribals, traders, police and paramilitary forces besides various social organisations and intellectuals would be involved in the exercise to solve the Maoist menace in coming days, he indicated.
