Home minister P Chidambaram, who is touring states hit by Naxalism, may soon talk to Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee after Jharkhand’s complaints that the West Bengal police had refused to launch joint operations against Naxals.
On Saturday, the home minister wrapped up a quick visit to Jharkhand and left behind a string of directives to expedite the finalisation of a surrender policy to deal with Naxalites and longer tenures for police and administrators
“If West Bengal does not agree to the policy of hot pursuit (that allows policemen from Jharkhand to operate in areas along the inter-state borders), I will speak with the WB chief minister,” he promised.
Hours later in Delhi, he unveiled a slew of measures taken by the Home Ministry, including approval of Rs 147cr to the Intelligence Bureau to strengthen its network.