India, Nov. 10 -- In May, Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said that the state government would issue firearm licences to "indigenous" people living in "remote and vulnerable areas" of the state. Last week, he said the first lot of licences would be issued in February. The policy is flawed on multiple counts.

First, the responsibility of providing security to citizens, irrespective of where they reside, rests with the State. The external borders are to be defended by the armed forces, and within the country, the police are entrusted with the task. The State must have monopoly over violence, subject to oversight from Parliament and the judiciary. Second, the State must not discriminate among citizens over their "indigenity". "Indi...