STEPS TO IMPROVE
INTERNAL SECURITY
M.K.
Dhar*
Given the external
factor in India’s internal security, it is by no means an easy
task for a government at the Centre to ensure complete peace and
security throughout the country even with the wholehearted cooperation
of the States. Over the decades, Pakistan has become the evil
force disturbing peace in India in pursuit of its fundamentalist
agenda aimed at internally destabilizing its neighbour. The terrorism
sponsored by it is today the prime factor in disturbing law and
order in the States, which are battling it with all the resources
at their command and assistance in the shape of military and para-military
forces provided by the Union Government.
Whether in Jammu
and Kashmir or in the North-Eastern States and Punjab earlier,
Pakistan’s disruptive hand is clearly visible. The Inter-Services
Intelligence (ISI) operatives have mustered confidence enough
to sponsor terrorist missions through its agents in other States
as well, such as Maharashtra and Gujarat. Where Pakistan cannot
operate directly, it arms and finances local insurgent groups
like the Maoists in Andhra Pradesh and Bihar. The Government led
by the Prime Minister, Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee, who has just
completed five eventful years in office, has had to bear the brunt
of Pakistan-sponsored terrorism in several parts of the country
and devote considerable attention and energy to maintaining peace.
Even though the security agencies have been strengthened and modernized
to cope better with the continuing threats to internal security,
they do not expect any respite from the onslaught of terrorism
so long as Pakistan chooses to persist with its nefarious game.
Terrorism has
emerged as the main threat to India’s internal security and the
fight against it will be a prolonged one. Other problems related
to the maintenance of law and order and keeping the communal situation
under control are within the competence of the Government to handle.
But it finds it difficult to effectively deal with the external
factor which has been duly identified and internationally isolated.
Given the factor of Pakistan’s proxy war and massive mobilization
of resources, the Government is doing its best to ensure orderly
governance and protect the lives of the citizens from criminals,
terrorists, drug pushers and the mafia. Sectarian, caste and linguistic
tensions are an inescapable feature of a composite society like
India, as are periodic outbursts of emotions caused by social
and economic inequities, deprivation and denial of opportunities.
A Government’s success is judged by the extent to which it succeeds
in keeping outpourings of discontent and democratic dissent under
control and does not allow any section of the society to disturb
the cultural, religious and linguistic harmony.
Approach
Prime Minister
Vajpayee has attempted a three-pronged approach to neutralise
threats to internal security. If the initiatives taken by him
recently succeed, some of the difficult law and order-related
problems facing the country for a long time are expected to be
resolved in the foreseeable future. He has demonstrated a degree
of skill in addressing these problems and has not hesitated to
sit across the table with insurgents who have not yet given up
their separatist agenda. In the first place, the Government has
made strenuous efforts to alert the world to the dangerous role
played by Pakistan in promoting terrorism in India and other parts
of the world. Islamabad has done so by giving official support,
finance and arms to secessionist groups in Jammu and Kashmir and
in the North-Eastern States. It has provided refuge to the Al
Qaeda terrorists led by Osama Bin Laden and the Taliban after
they were thrown out of Afghanistan and has permitted them to
restart training camps for terrorists. Many of the foreign mercenaries
trained and armed by Pakistan have surfaced in Kashmir also and
are battling the Indian security forces there.
Unfortunately,
this threat to internal security has not yet been neutralised.
Although the United States and other western countries have asked
Pakistan to stop sending terrorists across the Line of Control
into Jammu and Kashmir, Gen. Musharraf has paid no heed to them
and continues to pursue his anti-India agenda more vigorously
than ever. The patronage extended to Pakistan by the United States
which continues to use it to further its own strategic agenda
in this part of the world, is the main factor responsible for
emboldening Islamabad to continue its proxy war. Even the massive
deployment of troops under "Operation Parakram" has
not deterred Pakistan from sponsoring and promoting terrorism
due to the tacit encouragement it continues to receive from Washington,
contrary to the official US stand and the repeated assurances
to the Indian leaders. Shri Vajpayee has time and again assured
the nation that the security forces are gradually getting the
grip of the problem, are better prepared to meet the situation
and will ultimately neutralise this threat to internal as well
as external security of the nation.
Strategy
The second component
of Shri Vajpayee’s strategy is to explore the causes of unrest
among the people of Jammu and Kashmir and the North-Eastern States
and apply remedies so that they are not prone to exploitation
by Pakistan and other external agencies. In Jammu and Kashmir,
the Government positively responded to the demand of the people
for free and fair election held in October 2002 which saw the
exit of Dr. Farooq Abdullah’s National Conference government.
Even though the Pakistan-sponsored secessionist outfits boycotted
the election, the people of the State defied the terrorists’ threats
and bullets and turned up in large numbers to cast their vote
for their favoured candidates. The installation of the PDP-Congress
government led by Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed has inspired
confidence among the people and brought about a visible change
in the atmosphere. The last Assembly by-election from Pampore
constituency witnessed even a bigger voter turnout and the PDP
candidate won by a massive 12,000-vote margin.
The people now
expect that their grievances will be redressed and concrete economic
steps taken to counter militancy by weaning the unemployed youth
from the evil influence of the externally-sponsored fundamentalist
forces. No doubt, incidents of terrorism sponsored by Pakistan
will continue to occur, but the State will elicit better cooperation
from the people in rooting out militancy if it gives a clean and
honest administration, implements job-oriented and infrastructure-development
schemes and ensures that the funds allocated by the Centre are
actually spent and the benefit goes to those for whose these are
meant.
Simultaneously
with this, the Prime Minister has appointed a former Home Secretary,
Shri N. N. Vorha, as the Centre’s interlocutor to hold talks with
the elected representatives of the people, as also the separatist
groups like the Hurriyat Conference and others to solicit their
cooperation in putting an end to the militancy which has plagued
the State for over a decade and prevented its economic progress.
Shri Vajpayee’s initiative has been hailed by all sections of
political opinion and the militant groups have shown an inclination
to exchange views with Shri Vohra. The ground situation in the
State is improving, the people are fed up with militancy and long
for peace and security. There is disarray in the separatists’
camp also, with many opposed to foreign terrorists’ sponsorship
of Pakistan and the sufferings caused to innocent people during
their encounters with the security forces.
The two-pronged
approach, as suggested by Mufti Sayeed, is fighting terrorism
with determination and, at the same time, applying the healing
touch to soothe ruffled feelings. Mufti Sayeed’s decision to release
some militants, who had been in detention for long periods, was
criticised at first. But subsequently, after discussions with
the Centre the criteria of reviewing the cases of the detainees
have been evolved so that only those people whose release will
not complicate the law and order situation and who have served
terms longer than their prison sentences if convicted are set
free.
North-East
Another noteworthy
development is initiating talks with the leaders of the Nationalist
Socialist Council of Nagaland (I-M) T. Muivah and Isaak Chishi
Swu in order to bring to an end the decades-old insurgency in
Nagaland. Their meeting with the Prime Minister, the first of
its kind in 36 years, is being flagged as a milestone towards
finding a solution to the longest secessionist movement that India
has seen. The Naga leaders have agreed to stop fighting and create
an atmosphere conducive to a settlement of their demands. According
to Shri Muivah, a good beginning had been made and that "there
is a better understanding now with the Government acknowledging
the unique history and circumstances of Nagaland. If things went
along this path, we can talk and reach a meeting point".
Shri Swu found the Prime Minister and the leadership of India
very open. They were trying to solve the problem according to
the history of the people. "The earlier talks were not mature
on both sides and so we could not solve the problem. But this
time the leadership is mature and wants to tackle the problem
realistically", he said. There was agreement to continue
the formal talks until a lasting settlement is reached. The scope
of the negotiations, which have been unconditional, covers all
matters contained in their proposal of September 2001, including
the unification of the Naga areas in the continuous States. Although
this is a controversial demand, it can be discussed with the affected
States once prospects are held out for complete peace and normalcy
in Nagaland. The optimistic pro-peace statements by the Naga leaders
came at a time when temperatures are rising in certain parts of
the North-East, particularly in the Manipur Valley and its surroundings
hills dominated by non-Naga tribes and communities. It will require
a delicate handling of the talks by the Centre to consolidate
the trust and goodwill built over the past five years since the
cease-fire with NSCN(IM) came into being and has now been extended.
One more significant
event was the signing of an agreement with another militant outfit,
the Bodo Liberation Tigers (BLT), for the creation of a Bodoland
Territorial Council (BTC). This could form the basis for a lasting
settlement of the crisis that has been affecting the region for
over a decade. While the implementation of the accord would require
the players – the political leadership in Assam and, more importantly,
the leadership of the BLT- to act with a sense of purpose, the
broad lines on which it has been drawn up are indeed encouraging.
The provisions of the memorandum of settlement relate to the creation
of an autonomous self-governing body, constitutional protection
under the Sixth Schedule, fulfillment of economic, educational
and linguistic aspirations and socio-cultural identity of the
Bodos and speeding up development of the area. The proposed BTC
will comprise 3,082 villages which will be divided into four contiguous
districts after reorganisation of the existing districts of Assam
within six months of the signing of the pact. A panel comprising
representatives from the Centre, Assam government and the BLT
will decide by consensus the inclusion of 95 more villages and
areas in the Council on the basis of tribal population being not
less than 50 per cent, contiguity or any other agreed relevant
parameter within three months.
There is also
the National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB), which has not
only been engaged in an armed conflict with the State but also
held onto the demand for a separate Bodoland. Its members have
links with the United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA). True,
the NDFB has recently climbed down to demand a separate State
and in this sense sought bifurcation of Assam. By setting fire
to a gasoline tank and disrupting an oil pipeline, the ULFA, which
too has foreign links and is supported by Pakistan, has sent the
signal that it should also be talked to. The camps operated by
ULFA in Bangladesh and the assistance this outfit receives from
the ISI has been a hot topic of discussion between New Delhi and
Dhaka after the Deputy Prime Minister, Shri L.K. Advani, sought
closure of other terrorist camps directed against India and operating
from Bangladesh. According to reports the ULFA too is under tremendous
pressure from the security forces and a section of its leadership
favours a settlement with the Indian Government. The ULFA has
created a problem for the friendly government of Bhutan by setting
up training camps on the Bhutanese soil.
Experience shows
whether it is in the North-East or other parts of the country,
whenever there is a genuine commitment to autonomy on the part
of New Delhi and the State capitals, that helps restore the confidence
of the people living in such economically backward regions. The
memorandum of settlement in the case of Bodo-dominated regions
in Assam too will achieve its purpose only if the political leadership
at all levels displays a sense of purpose and includes the people
of the region in the democratic space. Similarly, the BLT leaders
too will have to strive to evolve at least the influential sections
within the NDFB as well as others in the BTC, rather than reduce
the 46-member body to an instrument for the self-preservation
of its own leaders.
The signing of
the Bodo accord comes as a great relief that the Bodo problem
has been sorted out through the democratic process of negotiations,
with the BLT settling for autonomy. This should hopefully create
a favourable precedent for talks with the Naga underground leaders,
as also the separatists in Jammu and Kashmir, who are being exploited
by Pakistan for its own evil purposes. The world over the autonomy
formula is seen as an acceptable middle ground. In India too the
Gorkhaland problem was sorted out earlier on the basis of an autonomous
hill district and this arrangement has so far worked satisfactorily.
The autonomous district concept, or greater devolution of powers
under the Constitution in the case of Jammu and Kashmir, can be
operated if the Centre and the State governments concerned show
greater pragmatism and faith in one another.
Apart from law
and order enforcement the use of the State’s power of reconciliation
can yield lasting results in improving the general internal security
environment in the country. Prime Minister Vajpayee seems to have
realised the advantage of pursuing a multi-pronged approach to
promoting peace and tranquillity on the domestic front and strengthening
internal security. Internal conflict management is the key to
the success of participative democracy, strengthening national
solidity and cohesion and firming up the nation’s resolve and
capability to meet any external threats to its security and territorial
integrity. (PIB Features)
*
Senior Political Commentator and former Diplomatic Editor, The
Hindustan Times
