'I am not in favour of non-state elements taking on the Naxalites (Maoists). We want the state to take them on,' Chidambaram said.

Replying to a supplementary, the minister said: 'I was asked a specific question about Salwa Judum and I have given a specific reply. I am not in favour of any non-state players taking on extremism.

'The (Chhattisgarh) chief minister (Raman Singh) now more or less accepts my line,' Chidambaram added.

Chhattisgarh is one of half a dozen states where Maoist guerrillas are most active and control vast areas where the writ of the state doesn't run and where security forces repeatedly get ambushed.

Noting that the issue 'essentially has to be answered by the states as this is linked to the lack of development', he said the 'most recent manifestation of this' was in Lalgarh in West Bengal where Maoists had declared a 'liberated area' till a major offensive was mounted against them.

'The issue has to be tackled two-fold. First, there is police action to re-establish the writ of the state followed by developmental activities,' Chidambaram said.