Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil today said in Rajya Sabha that Left extremism had grown but was ‘‘not as serious as is often made out.’’Replying to a discussion on the internal security scenario in the country, initiated by Arun Shourie on December 1, the minister said the government’s approach to the problem was ‘‘multi-pronged’’ and entailed better policing and addressing socio-economic issues. ‘‘We will continue to talk to the extremists,’’ the minister said.Shourie commended the minister for his approach but said that ‘‘such measures must be taken only after the authority of the state is established.’’ Shourie said since coordination between Naxal-affected states was a matter of concern, the Centre should consider setting up a federal agency to tackle the problem.Patil, in his reply, invited suggestions on how could the Centre intervene on issues concerning law and order, which was a state subject. The minister said Naxalism was not widespread in all the districts that were categorised as Naxal-affected. ‘‘One village or a hamlet may have been affected. The number of districts is often a misleading indicator,’’ the minister said, adding that exaggerating the threat will amount to playing into the hands of the terrorists. ‘‘There is no such thing as a Naxal corridor. They might want it but the government will not allow it to happen,’’ the minister said.Patil said he did not agree with Shourie’s view that there should no talks with the Naxalites. ‘‘The government agrees to Mr Shourie’s proposals regarding modernising the policing and improving intelligence gathering. While doing that, we would also like to continue the dialogue, since talks have helped in resolving many crises,’’ he said.
