The Centre on Sunday rejected the Maharashtra chief minister's demand for more stringent laws to deal with outfits like the Shiv Sena and the MNS.
The Centre on Sunday rejected Maharashtra chief minister Ashok Chavan’s demand for more stringent laws to deal with outfits like the Shiv Sena and the MNS.
Chavan’s demand for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to detect armed insurgents also did not find favour with Union home minister P Chidambaram, who said the Centre had no plans to supply such equipment to the state.
Sources privy to deliberations at the chief ministers’ conference here said Chavan’s contention that existing laws were insufficient to deal with the Senas drew a sharp reaction from Chidambaram.
Facing nationwide flak for the handling of the situation in Mumbai, Chidambaram said the laws were more than adequate and action should be taken by the state government in the wake of the campaign against migrants and Hindi film superstar Shah Rukh Khan.
The Senas have blamed North Indians for flooding Mumbai and taking away jobs meant for Maharashtrians. The Shiv Sena had called Khan a ‘traitor’ for saying Pakistani players should have been included in the Indian Premier League.
A visibly irked home minister reminded Chavan that the country expected him to take stringent action. He said the home ministry would send a detailed note to the state on what could be done under the laws, the sources added.
Chidambaram received accolades from unexpected quarters. The chief ministers of BJP-ruled states, including Gujarat’s Narenda Modi, praised him for the “deft handling” of the country’s internal security. Modi was joined by his counterparts from Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh, Raman Singh and Shivraj Singh Chauhan, respectively.
The bonhomie between opposition-ruled states and the Centre was reflected in the former backing the UPA government’s moves to counter left-wing insurgency in eight states, including Chhattisgarh, Bihar, and Jharkhand.
“They, along with the Left government in West Bengal, endorsed the Centre’s action plan to fight Naxalism,” Chidambaram said.
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