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From
Tehelka Magazine, Vol 9, Issue 18, Dated 05 May 2012 |
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‘Alex Menon Should be Released Without any Precondition’
Binayak Sen, National Vice-President, PUCL
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Binayak Sen
Photo: Vijay Pandey |
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How do we end this violence? In three simple steps.
To begin with, there has to be a withdrawal of militarisation. As long as the military is around, dialogue cannot take place. Everybody has to realise that withdrawal of militarisation is in the best interest of the people concerned. Second, there has to be legitimisation of dissent. We can’t criminalise dissent. Most important, the objective problems that people are facing in the area need to be addressed as fast as possible. The Planning Commission has taken many initiatives to study these problems in detail and given a host of recommendations. We should give heed to these recommendations so that the people’s lot can be improved.
Do you think the Maoists are getting fractionalised and losing their ideological coherence?
I have no real knowledge of the Maoist politics, so I can’t comment on it.
What primary mistakes do you think the government makes in dealing with the Maoists?
There is a problem of serious immiseration, including malnutrition, which is prevalent over the entire region. The very people who are suffering from poverty, lack of healthcare and education are the ones whose land is being acquired. They are being denied the ecology that is the basis of their survival. This is happening under different kinds of identities. These are the problems that need to be tackled.
Does kidnapping of a public official like Sukma Collector Alex Paul Menon cause a moral dilemma for those sympathetic to the tribal cause?
Alex Menon should be released forthwith without any precondition. Others like Prashant Bhushan have also categorically said that this is not the correct thing to do. At the same time, the State-based violence and militarisation also need to be reversed.
Kunal Majumder is a Senior Correspondent with Tehelka.
kunal@tehelka.com
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