Rejecting the Opposition NDA?s demand to impose President?s Rule in West Bengal over the Nandigram violence, the Centre on Friday said incidents of violence in some villages does not mean that the law and order situation in the entire state has collapsed.
?The use of Article 356 (which authorise the Centre to impose President?s rule in states) should not be used lightly,? home minister Shivraj Patil told Rajya Sabha in his reply to a short-duration discussion on ?the proposal to set up SEZ in Nandigram in West Bengal and the subsequent large scale violence.?
?We will be very careful in using this Article (356). We should not use it lightly or in a manner that is suspicious and will not be acceptable,? the home minister added.
?If few villages were affected, would it mean a complete breakdown of law and order in the entire state warranting imposition of President?s Rule?? Patil said in his reply, often thumped up by the CPI(M) members and obstructed by the Opposition side.
The minister, however, did not make any assessment of the state government?s dealing with the situation. ?The Centre can give directives to states or send advisories, but it does not mean that it will automatically lead to invoking Article 356,? he said.
On the CPI(M)?s argument that Maoists were behind the violence, he did not give a specific answer. However, without naming Maoists, Patil said the weapons seized from the area showed that the perpetrators of violence might have links with terrorist groups.
