Nitish Advocates an All-CM Meet to Discuss National Security

Patna: Dec. 1, 2008

Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, at a press conference in Patna following his weekly Janata Durbar on Monday, said that the Central Government should invite all the Chief Ministers for a high-level meeting to discuss issues related to security from foreign and domestic terrorists and the possibility of forming a federal security agency to protect the nation from any future Mumbai-like attacks.

"This federal agency cannot work or succeed if the state governments are not consulted before or kept in the loop to maintain complete transparency in the system," Kumar said while expressing his concerns regarding possible abuse by the agency if not kept under proper checks and balances.

On the use of National Security Guards jawans as personal security for certain high-profile politicians, the Chief Minister called such use wrong and 'an absolute waste of resources' that could otherwise be used to keep the nation safe from both internal and external extremist attacks.

Kumar also weighed in on the resignation of Home Minister Shivraj Patil and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister R. R. Patil saying the resignations were merely political gestures and a case of 'too little, too late'.

"Resignations are not the solution to the problems that India currently faces in the wake of terrorist attacks on Mumbai. It may placate some of the people for a brief period of time but the problem of keeping the nation safe from such attacks remains nonetheless," he said.

"When the Maharashtra government was busy encouraging regionalism in the state and Biharis were being assaulted and chased away from Mumbai, the UPA government did nothing to stop them. Now that the terrorists have struck the financial capital of the nation, the UPA government is talking about securing the border and preventing such incidents from taking place in the future," the Chief Minister said adding the attacks on Mumbai was the direct result of the policy failure of the UPA government.

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