TOKYO : Extremist violence by ultra left groups in some parts of India and “occasional incidents” from across the borders are far more “important challenges” facing the country than “extreme views” of some individuals, Defence Minister Arun Jaitley today said.
“Our more serious challenges are not on account of inter-community relationships, the interface and the inter- community relationships,” Jaitley, who is also the finance minister, said when asked about the Hindu-Muslim tension and its impact on economic development in India.
“I think within India, the debates and occasional statements by individuals is by and large a very peaceful one. You would have in a large democracy individuals with extreme views, making statements, on both sides,” he said while speaking at the Institute of International Finance (IIF) here.
But the ground reality is that there is no tense situation or confrontational situation in the country, he said.
India, Jaitley said, has a “problem of extremist violence coming from ultra left groups in some parts of central India (and the) tribal areas (there).”
“That’s an important challenge,” he said, adding the violence has often led to loss of innocent lives.
The other challenge is “occasional incidents” from across the borders through acts of terrors and the tension at borders.
“And these are far more significant challenges than merely a debate on social issues between communities,” he said.
The statement came days after 25 CRPF jawans were killed in a deadly Naxal ambush in Chhattisgarh’s Sukma. The government is said to be preparing a strategy to deal with the left-wing extremism. (AGENCIES)
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