Director-General of Police K. Aravinda Rao on Sunday said the different players in civil society, particularly the media, should play an active role in not encouraging violence.
“Unfortunately, vested interests in the form of political forces, extremists and others have infiltrated into the media to vitiate the atmosphere,” Mr. Aravinda Rao said on the concluding day of three-day national seminar on `Containing violence: Measures for resolution.”
The seminar was conducted by the Centre for Gandhian Studies, GITAM University, with the sponsorship of Indian Council of Philosophical Research.
Sign of frustration
Violence was a sign of frustration and anger and an offshoot of unfulfilled desire, he said, adding of late, there was a growing trend for group violence.
Expressing concern at political violence and the role of caste and sectarian forces in instigating violence, he said in most cases, they occurred due to vote bank politics. Faction violence was also encouraged to further the interest of the political groups/parties.
The criminal justice system should not be the last resort for solving certain problems. In a democracy, civil society should discharge its responsibility in resolution of conflicts instead of passing on the buck to others.
Maoist violence
The DGP took exception to the violence perpetrated by left wing extremists and said poverty should not give them legitimacy to take to arms. “Carrying a gun is not the solution for poverty,” he added.
He said that with the implementation of land reforms and large landholding becoming a thing of the past, Maoists were searching for newer reasons for their survival such as globalisation, exploitation of natural resources in forest and displacement of tribals.
The DGP said Maoists were continuing with luring innocent people by recruiting them as their cadre as the tribals see only those `gun-totting people’ in the jungles.
GITAM University Vice-Chancellor G. Subrahmanyam welcomed. P.V. Ramana, a research scholar, proposed a vote of thanks.
