Development Works Would Curb Extremism in India: Expert

Agartala, Aug 6 : Former Director General of National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) Shankar Sen today opined that development activities would curb insurgency and that the extremists were the main violator of human rights in India.

The retired Indian Police Service (IPS) official remarked that Tripura has emerged as a model in carrying out successful counter insurgency operation.

The state government had conceived a complete different model by resorting to massive developmental activities instead of violent retaliation yielding good results.

''I feel the Tripura model would be best in fighting extremism in the Indian states,'' Mr Sen suggested and opined that following the Jeevan Reddy Commission report some provisions of Armed Force Special Power Act (AFSA) needs to be diluted.

Sen also expressed serious concern over the growing incidences of human rights violation in India.

''Previously, NHRC received an average of 3,000 complaints annually but now the figure has croseed 70,000,'' Mr Sen said that human rights were violated at home, workplaces, schools and other public arenas.

He also expressed concern over the increasing incidences of custodial death in India.

''If any incident of custodial death occurred and the police refused to accept complaints it should immediately be reported to the higher authority,'' Sen suggested.