Flayed over law, order, Patil hits back

“Law and order functions have to be performed by the states and the Centre can only help. In spite of this, we are repeatedly questioned about what we have done,” Patil said replying to the discussion in Lok Sabha on Demand for Grants worth Rs 29,820 crore under the control of the Ministry of Home Affairs for 2008-09.

“We can’t go there. Even if we do, I cannot order them,” he said, referring to scenarios wherein there are disturbances in states.

He said states had been empowered to identify and deport illegal Bangladeshi migrants.

On Naxalism, the Home Minister said the Centre was accused of going soft on Terror if it attempted to address the issue intelligently and was accused of barbarity if it tried handling it with force. “Both approaches have to be used as and when required,” he said, adding terror activities in Andhra Pradesh and Tripura had gone down by 70 per cent and 30 per cent respectively.

Patil also expressed anguish at being criticised for calling Naxalites “brothers and sisters”. “What else should I call them? They are part of our blood,” he said.

The Home Minister said the figures on Naxal-affected areas had been blown out of proportion. “Saying 10 states are affected by Naxalism implies 30 per cent of the country is affected by the menace. But if you count the affected areas through their respective police stations, the figure comes down to 3 per cent,” he added