Human rights watchdog Amnesty International on Tuesday flayed the Indian government for laxity to prevent violence in various parts but lauded it for bringing in a legislation ensuring Right to Information and introducing a draft bill to prevent communal violence.
"In Andhra Pradesh, peace talks between the state government and the Maoist (Naxalite) People's War Group collapsed after eight months, signalling a return to a series of attacks during which civilians were routinely targeted," the Amnesty said in its annual report for 2005.
The watchdog said human rights violations continued to surge in different parts of India, including Jammu and Kashmir and North Eastern states. The rights group said, "Socially and economically marginalised groups in the country, including women, adivasis and Dalits are facing systemic discrimination."
The report observes that politically motivated violence decreased in 2005 in Jammu and Kashmir but torture, custodial deaths and 'disappearance' continued. On the violence in Kashmir and the ongoing negotiations, it said: "With issues at the core of the conflict yet to be taken up, relations between India and Pakistan improved at only a slow pace."
Torture, attacks and killings of civilians by armed groups in Kashmir, Northeast and several central, and eastern states where left wing armed groups are active have been on the rise during last year, the report noted.