Naxalism on rise due to wrong policies, guns no solution: General VK Singh

Jaipur: Former Army chief General VK Singh on Monday blamed successive governments at the Centre and states for the rise of Naxalism in the country, noting that a host of issues like lack of development and violation of people's rights helped strengthening base of the ultras in the country.

"Those who are in power are responsible for the issue of Naxalism. It can not be solved by force deployment, but by social reform and change in policies," Singh said in Jaipur. Calling for urgent steps to deal with the challenge in wake of the increasing expansion of Naxals, Singh, said the issue could be resolved only through wide-ranging reforms and not by force.

"When CRPF Jawans were killed in an ambush laid by Naxals in Chhattisgarh in 2010, the Centre sought my suggestion over possibility of deployment of Army but I declined because this issue can be solved only by social reforms," he said.

Issues like lack of development and violation of people\'s rights helped strengthening the Naxal base, said Singh.

He said factors like injustice on part of the machinery compel people to support Naxals as they start seeing a solution to their problems in the methods used by the ultras.

The number of districts affected with Naxalism was 50 in 1990 and now has increased to around 270, Singh said, underlining the need for urgent attention towards the issue.

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