New Delhi, January 4
Union Home Minister P Chidambaram today allayed apprehension of any threat to the life of Ilina Sen, wife of jailed activist Binayak Sen who has been sentenced on the charge of sedition, or any member of her family. He advised her to go in appeal if she was not satisfied with the Raipur court verdict awarding life term to the paediatrician for supporting Naxalites.
“The judgment, according to many, is unsatisfactory…the only way is to file an appeal against it. Those who respect the law should respect the processes of law as well,” he said at a press conference at which he presented the report of his ministry for December, 2010.
At an interaction with the media yesterday, Ilina said she feared for her safety and that of her daughters, alleging that the family’s phones were being tapped.
Chidambaram said he had read news reports in that regard. “I am sorry if she apprehends threat to her life. I will speak to the Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh also. There is no reason why she or any member of her family should feel threatened in India.”
About the Left-wing extremism, the minister said the situation in the states affected by it continued to remain a matter of grave concern for the Centre. The loss of lives in Silda, West Bengal (February 15, 2010); Dantewada, Chhattisgarh (April 6, 2010); Bijapur, Chhattisgarh (May 8, 2010) and Dhaudhai, Narayanpur, Chhattisgarh (June 29, 2010) were the low points during the year.
A total of 713 civilians were killed by the Naxalites as against 591 in 2009. The security forces lost 285 personnel as against 317 in 2009, while they were able to neutralise 171 extremists as against 219 in 2009. It would be apparent that the Naxalites had not only spurned the offer of talks, but also escalated the conflict, the minister observed.
On Jammu and Kashmir, the Home Minister said the situation in the state had improved significantly following the visit of an all-party delegation and the appointment of interlocutors after three months of unrest that started in June last year. “In particular, the interlocutors have been able to change the discourse and persuade a number of stakeholders to offer suggestions for a political solution,” he added.
Referring to the 3G services, he said the Department of Telecom (DoT) and the Home Ministry were together putting in place a mechanism to monitor or intercept 3G transactions when necessary in the interest of national security.
About the situation in the National Capital, he said policing in Delhi had improved significantly. “It is quite clear from statistics that policing in Delhi has become more effective over the last few years. Incidents of crime in Delhi have declined. We can’t go by impressions, but by facts,” he added.
Chidambaram appealed to various parties invited for the January 6 meeting convened by the Centre on the Telangana issue and participate in the meeting and give their suggestions.
Referring to Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh’s demand that all cases of terrorism after the Malegaon blasts be investigated by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), he said the agency was already doing that and would continue to do so in future as well.
