Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah says Anti-Naxal Force to be disbanded, home department reply contradicts

To a question raised by MLC M P Kushalappa, the home ministry said that the Anti-Naxal Force will be active and there are no plans to disband it. The response also mentioned there was no proposal to recruit new personnel to the force. The response came on the same day when Siddaramaiah gave the contradictory statement.

The CM said the surrendered Naxals will be brought to the social mainstream and to provide basic facilities in the Naxal-affected areas, a special package of Rs 10 crore will be formulated.

Six Naxals – Mundagaru Latha, considered the leader of the armed movement in South India, Sundari Kuthlur, Vanajakshi Balehole, Marappa Aroli, Jisha, and K Vasanth – surrendered last month at a function also attended by Siddaramaiah.

While the first four hail from different parts of Karnataka, Jisha is from Kerala and Vasanth from Tamil Nadu.

A police officer, who is part of the Anti-Naxal Force, said that the Naxal activity in the state is almost nil today, but added that “we cannot be sure about the future”.

“The force is well trained and is physically fit to work under dire situations. Once the force is disbanded, the personnel must not be sent for normal armed force duties. They should be sent to the Rapid Action Force,” the officer added.

Speaking to The Indian Express, retired police officer S K Umesh suggested that the Anti-Naxal Force could be used in the sensitive coastal regions, including Mangaluru.

“There have been a lot of communal incidents in the coastal regions. The force can be used in the region to prevent such incidents,” he said.