Union Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju on Thursday asserted that the country is capable of handling any kind of threat, irrespective of whether it is “internal and external”.
For the country to become “developed and great”, it needs to be secure itself first in safeguarding citizens as the threats are not just from China or Pakistan but also from all along the coastline, he pointed out.
He refused to speak anything about the current impasse with China on Dokalam and Ladakh incidents “considering the situation as it exists”.
The Union Minister was also reluctant to comment on the Supreme Court ordering the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to probe “love jihad” pertaining to a case of an alleged forcible conversion and marriage in Kerala. “The Supreme Court has made a ruling and the NIA will be investigating but there appears to be a definite pattern,” he observed, declining to comment further when pressed by newsmen soon after he addressed a youth convention jointly organised by the National Service Scheme (NSS) and Nehru Yuva Kendra Sangathan (NYKS) on ‘National Security - Modi Government Efforts & Achievement’ at the Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT) auditorium. Earlier, responding to a query posed by a NSS volunteer on why the Centre was selective in reacting to a parish priest murder in Chandigarh as against the murder of a RSS worker in Kerala, Mr. Rijiju said that the Union Ministry and Cabinet Minister Rajnath Singh regularly communicates with the States on any violence.
“The Kerala incident was highlighted by the media so everyone came to know that Mr. Singh had talked to the Chief Minister there. We are constitutionally bound to do our duty and do not indiscriminate between incidents, I cannot help if the media did not report about the other incident,” he said.
The Minister said there are inter-ministerial meetings, constant exchange of intelligence and information between various security wings for quicker response especially after the Modi-led government came to power. “We certainly did a lot for the uniformed personnel although much more can be done,” he said. Despite having being saddled with obsolete laws, “we are adapting quickly” as the government wants to put in place a robust policing and security system. “Security and peace were essential for the nation’s development,” he said, adding that the government is all for inclusive development as we “cannot have one group enjoying all benefits and another group suffering.
