Political violence on downswing, says CM

By Our Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD, SEPT. 19. The Assembly, which debated political violence and atrocities on the weaker sections on Wednesday, was informed that both were on the downswing over the years.

A statement presented to the House by the Chief Minister, Mr. N. Chandrababu Naidu, said on account of preventive measures taken by the Government, the number of political killings declined from 149 in 1998 to 102 the following year, 59 in 2000 and 45 so far this year. Of the 463 accused in the 45 murders this year, 348 had been arrested.

Offences against the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes also came down progressively from 2056 in 1998 to 1115 so far this year while murders dropped from 48 to 15 and rapes from 83 to 51 during the same time.

About 80,000 people drawn from the regular civil and armed police, CRPF, home guards, companies of police from Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Orissa were drafted for the elections to the local bodies and later for the gram panchayats this year. Twentyseven persons were killed in the election-related incidents, apart from two in police firing and eight policemen and a civilian in the landmine blast by the PWG in Guntur district.

The Home Minister, Mr. T. Devender Goud, who replied to the debate, said as compared to the local bodies elections in 1995, there was an improvement in terms of fewer incidents of serious violent crimes. The number of murders decreased from 61 to 26, police firing from 94 (9 deaths) to 47 (3 deaths) and bomb- throwing from 71 to 43. In the 1995 polls, 41 cases of assault on polling officials were reported against none now.

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : Southern States
Previous : All set for Siddipet, Vuyyur byelections
Next     : Schoolboys sexually assaulted at SW residential
           school