KOLKATA: Salwa Judum, or 'peace march' , appears to have made a silent entry into West Bengal, albeit on the sly. The system was introduced by the Chhattisgarh government in June, 2005, in the Dantewada district where the state administration armed villagers to combat the Maoists.
The anti-Naxalite people's resistance movement eventually received bipartisan support from both the opposition and the rural parties. State police even trained Dantewada villagers to handle firearms to take on the Maoists. However, the Chhattisgarh government had to face criticism from various quarters for taking such counter-terrorism steps.
Officially, the CPM-led government in West Bengal never hinted that it would introduce Salwa Judum. But, it appears, the party has silently introduced a home-grown version in the Maoist-infested Jangalmahal. "It appears the CPM-led government has given passive support to the party's bid to indulge in counter-terrorism ," said a political source closely tracking the developments
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