The Karnataka Government's inability to deal with Veerappan speaks volumes about its lack of political will or ignorance of the resources available to capture him. Clearly the state police constabulary, both civil and armed, have proved incapable of bringing Veerappan to book. Even central para-military agencies such as the Border Security Force and the National Security Guards have not succeeded in their missions against the man.

Does that mean that the Karnataka Government has to appear helpless and grant the criminal amnesty? Going by the book the police have to arrest Veerappan for killing several government officials, particularly from the police and forest departments. But what happens when the police are not able to perform their job due to constraints of training and equipment to handle a situation made more challenging owing to the terrain?

Under normal circumstances state police departments generally operate in urban or rural areas, and have also done so in the Chambal ravines of Madhya Pradesh. However, in the Veerappan case, after deploying the BSF also proved fruitless the only answer would be to use the ultimate national security organisations, namely the Army.

Some reservations have been expressed about calling in the Army, for different reasons including the need to do so in what is a task for the police. An Inspector General of Police once remarked that the Karnataka police's inability to capture Veerappan was similar to the Army/IPKF not being able to lay their hands on LTTE supremo Velupillai Pirabakaran in Sri Lanka. Such logic swings against deploying the Army for Operation Vanquish Veerappan.

However, given the options available to the state government for tackling Veerappan, the Army appears far better suited than the police for the job. The assignment primarily involves commando tactics, jungle warfare and heliborne operations. Army para-commandos have distinguished themselves in counter-insurgency operations in Sri Lanka and the Kashmir Valley.

A senior intelligence officer who was involved in the IPKF operation acknowledged that the LTTE were impressed by the para-commandos and their jungle warfare skills, especially ambush. While the LTTE may have got the better of several Army units the para-commandos were always one up on them. They are trained to fight in an unconventional fashion using stealth, speed and surprise.

Unfortunately, the state governments and their Chief Ministers are ill-informed about the national security apparatus. Former Karnataka Chief Minister S. Bangarappa made a public announcement -- when Police Superintendent Harikrishna was killed by Veerappan -- about calling in the Army. He actually meant para-military forces.

The BSF, deployed against the People's War Group in Andhra Pradesh, once lost 14 constables when their truck exploded on a landmine. This reinforces the idea that conventional military training cannot be effective against Veerappan, who has evolved into an excellent guerilla warrior over the years, evading the police and para-military agencies. The central and state para-military forces such as the BSF, the NSG and the Karnataka State Reserve Police only have a semi-military ethos and are not equipped for jungle-warfare operations.

The difference between security and assault commandos needs to be noted; wherein para-military forces have developed an orientation to commando tactics but confined to security duties rather than extending to assault roles. The emphasis in security commando training is restricted to physical fitness, unarmed combat and weapon training skills. An assault commando, apart from such basic skills, is trained to think beyond the fringes and find creative solutions. In others words they do not go by the book.

Coming back to Veerappan, who is not an ordinary criminal but has advantages like familiarity with the terrain and a degree of local support, committing conventionally trained forces is a waste of money and effort. There is a need to utilise the expertise of Army para-commandos or special forces, who are ideally suited to deal with Veerappan. If the government has no reservation in using the Army to aid civil administration elsewhere why not for capturing a bandit holding it to ransom?

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.