NIC Meet: PM shows concern over radicalization, communal violence
Saturday September 10, 2011 05:19:57 PM,
IANS
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NIC meeting to discuss ways to curb radicalisation of youth
The 15th
meeting of the National Integration Council (NIC) will be held
here Saturday to discuss measures to curb communalism and
radicalisation of the youth in the name of religion and caste.
According to an official spokesman, the agenda for the meeting
includes "measures to curb communalism and communal violence and
approach to the »
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New Delhi:
Three days after a bomb blast at Delhi High Court killed 13
people, Prime Minister Manmohan SIngh Saturday admitted that a
section of the country's youth had been radicalised, but said no
ideology could justify violence.
"We need to identify and address the causes of radicalisation of
some of our youth," Singh said at the 15th National Integration
Council (NIC) meeting here.
"The problems of terrorism and leftwing extremism constitute two
major challenges that our society and polity face today. The
terrorist attack in Delhi last Wednesday is a stark reminder to us
that there can be no let up in our vigilance," he said.
"Time and again, our nation has been subjected to terrorist
violence. Terrorists seek to justify such violence based on
misplaced sense of ideology.
"The institutions and instruments of our democratic polity allow
sufficient opportunity for articulating differing points of view
without recourse to violence," the prime minister said.
The NIC meet, happening after three years, discussed measures to
promote communal harmony, eliminate discrimination, especially
against minorities and Scheduled Tribes, and ways in which the
state and police should handle civil disturbances.
Singh asked the NIC to unequivocally send out a message that
violence cannot be justified under any circumstances and reaffirm
the nation's collective resolve to fight it in all its
manifestations.
"No civilised society can tolerate or endorse loss of innocent
lives in the pursuit of any ideology," he added.
Singh chose the occasion to point out that lack of productive
employment opportunities was one factor leading to radicalisation
of youth.
He also listed out the social welfare schemes of the government
such as the national rural employment guarantee programme; the
land acquisition, resettlement and rehabilitation bill; rural
health mission; Bharat Nirman projects; forest rights and right to
education legislations as some of the measures to wean away young
men and women from radical movements.
Expressing "great satisfaction" that inter-community relations in
recent years have by and large remained harmonious, the prime
minister said NIC members had played an active role in ensuring
that people responded with maturity to developments that may
otherwise flare up communal tempers.
"Nevertheless, we need to maintain a continuous vigil in this
regard. We also need to recognise that members of the minority
communities often have a perception of being unfairly targeted by
law enforcement agencies in the aftermath of unfortunate
incidents," he said.
"While law must take its own course, we need to ensure that our
investigating agencies are free from biases and prejudices of any
kind. The media also has to play an increasingly important and
constructive role in promoting peace and harmony in our society,"
he added.
On the law enforcement front, the prime minister said there must
be a continuous upgrade and strengthening of the investigating
agencies and intelligence gathering apparatus to deal more
effectively with newer methods and technologies that the
terrorists and Maoists adopt.
"In the last few years, we have tried hard to achieve this," he
said, listing out measures such as the National Intelligence Grid,
called the NATGRID, being implemented to access all intelligence
sources and analysis to identify actionable points.
Noting that the National Investigation Agency (NIA) had begun
investigating terrorist-related crimes in the right earnest, he
said of the 29 cases handed over to the NIA, charge sheets were
filed in 20 cases.
"Security from internal and external disturbances is a sine qua
non for a nation state and steps to ensure this have always been
accorded the highest priority in government. Security matters have
been regularly reviewed and discussed jointly with state
governments," he said.
"We have also taken up security issues with our neighbours, and I
am happy that some of our neighbours have extended cooperation,
which has proved helpful in controlling violence in the
northeast," he said.
"However, concerns remain and these will continue to be
addressed," he added.
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