Naxal Nemesis; Governor Goal; Sand Sin
Opinion Watch
Naxal Nemesis
The Hindu and The Pioneer have lambasted the government for making top claims of having checked the Maoist violence that the spread from the 96 district in 2010 came to just 41 by 2021. The Pioneer gave an account of a series of deadly naxal attacks with heavy toll in 2013, 2014, 2020 and now to roast government’s repeated claims of Maoists acting in desperation.
The dailies noted in the backdrop of the Dantewada attack in Chhattisgarh which left 10 police persons dead that the Maoists continue to hold grounds in South Bastar, in areas dotting the borders of Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Jharkhand and Andhra Pradesh. They underlined that death toll due to naxal attacks indeed has come down from the high of 1005 in 2010 to 147 in 2021, but the armed Maoists are certainly not down and out.
India is paying heavy price to the presence of the Maoists in the dense forests of the Bastar district. There is no scope to lower the guard, but intensify surveillance by deploying drones and intelligence to scorch any sign of the Maoists in the country.
Governor Goal
The Asian Age has claimed in its Editorial that the Supreme Court observation that “as soon as possible” for Governors in deciding on bills passed by Assemblies indeed mean a quick decision. The daily stated that apex court stating that the Constitution enshrines serious intent in Governor taking a decision on bills has brought clarity on the role of Governors.
The daily detailed the public spectacle of the slugfest between Governors of Telangana and Tamil Nadu with the respective governments. It shed spotlight on gung-ho approach of Tamil Nadu Governor in publicly saying that a bill lying with him was as good as dead.
Governors are much decried in the Opposition-ruled states for their political activism. This has dented even the semblance of gravity in the Centre-state relations. Positions of Governors slotted for political considerations should be the sole reasons for ugly spats seen in Telangana and Tamil Nadu.
Sand Sin
Sand mafia has remarkable immunity from rule of law across the country, and they can run over the people tasked with enforcing the existing laws with no fear. The Hindu has lamented the murder of Lourdhu Francis, a village administrative officer by the sand mafia in Thoothukudi in Tamil Nadu.
The Chennai-based daily gave an account of a number of incidents, including one involving a district collector who nearly lost her life, to argue that illegal sand quarrying is a lawless affairs in Tamil Nadu. The daily said that all measures of the state government to stop illegal sand quarrying have failed to stop of the mafia.
A woman officer was pulled and dragged by sand mafia in Bihar last week. Senior BJP leader Uma Bharti had expressed shock at the extent of illegal sand quarrying in a protected zone last year. Highways at nights are taken over by trucks carrying illegally mined sands. One daily had recently written, “laws are for fools”.
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