United front can curb cross-border crime: Amit Shah at MHA meet

New Delhi, October 27

Union Home Minister Amit Shah has said the security situation in three “hotspots” — Jammu and Kashmir, North-East (N-E) and Naxal-affected areas — has improved considerably in the past eight years of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s rule.

Most non-BJP CMS keep away

Most of the CMs belonging to the non-BJP states, who hold the charge of the Home departments, skipped the ‘chintan shivir’ presided over by Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Mamata Banerjee (West Bengal), Nitish Kumar (Bihar), Naveen Patnaik (Odisha), MK Stalin (Tamil Nadu) and Ashok Gehlot (Rajasthan) did not attend the event. tns

“It is the collective responsibility of the state and the Central governments to effectively tackle trans-border crime,” he said at the inaugural session of the two-day “chintan shivir” of Home Ministers of states beginning today in Faridabad.

“According to the Constitution, law and order is a state subject… But we can curb trans-border or borderless crimes only when all states sit together to ponder over them, make a common strategy and (make) efforts to curb them,” he said.

Shah noted that the ‘shivir’ could become a platform to discuss strategies to counter cybercrimes, narcotics and cross-border terrorism, among others, and to exchange good practices in law and order.

The minister said, “In 2020, the government took a strong action to stop foreign funding of NGOs, which indulged in religious conversion and anti-national activities, by amending the FCRA.”

He also noted that the Modi government had tasted success on all fronts of internal security — be it in J&K, N-E or Naxal-hit areas.

With regard to J&K, Shah said, “Terror incidents have reduced by 34 per cent in 37 months after August 5, 2019. Sixty-four per cent less deaths have been reported.”

Shah also said that the National Investigation Agency (NIA) will set up at least one office in all states by 2024 to develop a strong anti-terror network.