N-E Issues Mismanaged For 50 Years: Gupta

Union home minister Indrajit Gupta yesterday admitted in the Rajya Sabha that the problems of insurgency in the north-eastern states have been mismanaged for the last fifty years. He emphasised the need for a comprehensive solution to the regions issues.

He declared that the government was open to discussions with leaders of insurgent groups provided they were ready to negotiate within the ambit of the Indian Constitution. They should tell us their demands except secessionism.

The government was open even on the issue of meeting such leaders in foreign lands, if it could bring peace, he clarified. In fact, former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda met leaders of the Naga insurgent group, NSCN-I, in Europe after assuming office. The meeting was arranged by the Intelligence Bureau (IB).

No headway could be made as the insurgent leaders failed to comply with Gowdas condition that they should publicly declare their allegiance to India.

Replying to a call attention motion by BJP MP Narendra Mohan regarding insurgency in the north-eastern states, Gupta said there is not much of light at the end of the tunnel at this moment. However, he ended his reply on a positive note by saying that the government was doing everything to tackle the problems.

There is nothing to get very panicky. We are better equipped politically and psychologically. Some deficiencies had to be made up on the ground. He assured the members that there was no reason for despair and that the security forces were quite well equipped to deal with any modern weapons the insurgents may have with them. He agreed with some members suggestion that development should be given priority to tackle the problem, but doubted if development activities could take off in the context of violence and instability. What can be done when businessmen do not want to invest there, he asked.

The government has also to ensure that the funds earmarked for development was not misappropriated or diverted to other activities, he said. The money sent for developmental activities in the state is going down the drains and the end result is no development.

Gupta argued that the chief ministers of these states and other state officials should be held responsible for implementing the various developmental schemes. In this context, the North-Eastern council could act as a monitoring agency, he suggested. He welcomed some members suggestion that leading citizens from the North-East should be included in the committee for looking into problems of the region. India was getting full cooperation from its neighbouring states, particularly Bangladesh and Burma, in uprooting insurgent training camps in these countries.

Bhutan has sought Indias help in tackling the problems created by the United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA), which has established a base in south Bhutan, he said.