The following letter was authored by me as an expression of growing concern to the mindless loss of lives of our jawans, who too had loved ones back home, and the growing vulnerability of the Indian state to such security threats both internally and externally.
If you share these sentiments, and agree with what I have to suggest, then kindly share it with your friends etc. to build up a strong public opinion on the same.
Best Wishes
Navneet
Respected Chidambaram ji,
You have earned the respect and admiration of millions of we citizens, by owning up the responsibility behind the Dantewada massacre, and even offering to step down from the post of Union Home Minister.
You were certainly not off the mark in Lalgarh, where you stated that the "buck stops at the Chief Minister's desk" where tackling the Naxal menance was concerned. It is a common knowledge that the law and order is state subject, and hence it is the Chief Minister of the affected state/s, who has to shoulder the prime responsibility behind the same. Centre’s role in such matters should ideally be supplementary in nature.
Having said that, it is now high time for us to take stock of the situation, and face the reality which is confronting our nation today, despite the fact that the same may not be palatable to some of us.
A disclaimer - even though you have held to the high moral ground that the buck behind the Dantewada massacre stops at your desk, yet it would not be fair to hold only you personally accountable for the state of affairs as highlighted below. But yes, fortunately or unfortunately, since you have been occupying the "hot seat" which was literally thrust upon you in the aftermath of 26/11, you cannot escape such bitter truths which exist as on date. Furthermore, we citizens expect you to be on the forefront and muster all courage, skills, energy, while effectively discharging your responsibilities as the Union Home Minister.
The Times of India dated 7th April, serves a chilling reminder to the overall vulnerability of the Indian state, to both internal and external security threats, notwithstanding the fact that for nearly three decades now, we have been grappling with jehadi terrorism , and above all, over the past four decades or so our struggle with the naxal menance which by now has managed to evolve itself as the single biggest internal threat to our Nation, with the Dantewada massacre leaving no doubt whatsoever in anyone's mind about the same.
The front page of this issue of The Times of India highlights five incidents of Naxal violence on our men in uniform since 15th March ,2007 till 15th Feb 2010, in which more than 150 security personnel lost their lives. Alongside this newsitem is a statistic which suggests that while 133 people were killed by militants in J&K in 2009, 1134 died in Naxal violence.
On the bottom of this page a newsitem, " 26/11 killers quietly buried in January", though unrelated , yet served us a grim reminder of the fact that despite a tragedy like 26/11, our establishment is yet to learn every alphabet of the word "security", and imbibe the same in the overall psyche of our body politic.
Then the other headline on the frontpage itself, " Chinese hackers steal secret defence files" added that proverbial salt to our wounds, which are yet to be healed even decades after battling such internal and external threats.
The reasons are not hard to find. The passing of the buck between at the high echelons of our political leadership, which preceded before the Dantewada massacre, made a complete mockery of the seriousness among the distinguished parliamentarians of our country, where our fight against the Naxal violence is concerned.
This coupled with a report in this very edition of The Times of India, :
" With polls due later this year , Bihar CM Nitish Kumar is reluctant to engage in any major offensive , Jharkhand CM Shibu Soren has always been slippery on Maosists, and West Bengal CM Buddadeb Bhattacharjee is squabbling with the Centre. It is only off late that Orissa CM Naveen Patnaik has joined the anti Naxal operations and began to get after the ultras in his state..." leaves no room for any doubt whatsover that vested political interests are the biggest threat, not for our politicians and powers that be who are in any way well protected with A-Z class security cover at we taxpayer's expense, but rather the threat is for we the common citizens, and those of our loved ones who have had the courage to join the various security forces, with the noble objective of securing our motherland and we citizens, from such threats.
While reams and reams of paper and tonnes of ink could be wasted in analyzing the genesis and root cause behind such threats alongwith the suggested options, which could also include the opinions of some sympathizers of the Naxals, two questions which should now be on the uppermost in our minds are:
"How many more lives have to be sacrificed just for the sake of some vested political interests and an indifferent bureaucratic set up which seems to be immune to such sacrifices of our valiant loved ones?" and
" Is it worthwhile for our loved ones to opt for a career in the security forces,being fully aware of the fact that while they may be able to vanquish their adversary, but not even God would be able to save them from the vested political interests and the relative indifference of the powers that be?"
The revelation by the media of the sub human and dangerous conditions of the camps where our jawans are put up, and are expected to put their lives at risk at the drop of a hat during anti Naxal operations , were truly appalling to say the least, and should make our heads hang in shame. Apart from Naxals , they have to face the omnipresent threats from malaria and poisonous reptiles, besides craving for adequate food and drinking water. What a tragic tale of government apathy towards all those who chose a profession which called for supreme sacrifice!
As on date our political leadership is yet to decide on using the airpower in anti Naxal operations. The reasons advanced sound noble theoretically, as offensive airpower is ideally meant for enemy across the border.
But one question which begs an answer till date is:
" How many more jawans with loved ones back home have to be sacrificed at the altar of an indecisive, soft, and indifferent leadership and bureaucratic apparatus which seems to be woefully divorced from the ground realities, and seem to be confined to their secure air conditioned environments to take bold, practical, and timely decisions?"
Yes, the use of airpower need not necessarily imply carpet bombing of the Naxal affected areas, rather it could be used to effectively track down the Naxals in those difficult terrains, and help in mounting the right offensive at the earliest.
Respected Chidambaram ji, mercifully enough, the opposition has been very responsible in its reaction post the massacre, and have pledged their support to you. Capitalizing on this opportunity to forge a political consensus, cutting across party lines and political ideologies, to use the right strategy, right technology, and right weapon systems, against the single biggest threat facing our nation, is something which is now only too obvious to merit any mention.
And finally, given our poltico bureaucratic culture, those in the lowermost ranks of our security apparatus are often ignored while taking crucial decisions on such operations. Yet tragically enough, it is these very personnel from the lowermost ranks who lead in making the supreme sacrifices during such operations.
If we are really serious about tackling the various internal and external threats confronting our nation today, and do believe that a highly motivated security apparatus is the need of the hour where each jawan is convinced that he has the complete backing of the state, then we would have to imbibe a new work culture in this entire politico bureaucratic set up, where all crucial decisions are primarily centered around if not dictated, by the various professional and logistics related needs of those, who are expected to be the first to put their lives at stake for our security.
To be specific, their security and professional efficiency should be the twin objectives, central to any crucial decisions relating to such operations.
Yes, this would call for out of box thinking, greater coordination and cooperation between various agencies directly or indirectly involved in our security, but then there is no other alternative.
As a footnote, let us not forget that the day a realization dawns among our jawans that:
“Is it worthwhile for us to risk our lives when our powers that be are ignoring us, and is it worthwhile to leave our loved ones to grieve our loss all their lives?" that day we would face an insurmountable challenge which can take the winds off our sails.
We are confident the despite such challenges confronting our Nation today, you would not disappoint we the people of India, and leave an indelible mark later on , by virtue of your extraordinary accomplishments as our Union Home Minister.
Most Respectfully,
Navneet Dhawan
New Delhi.
