Thaindian News

Kolkata, Oct 15 (IANS) Maoist sympathisers and pro-ultra activists Saturday scoffed at the seven-day ultimatum West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has given to the Left-wing extremists to choose between dialogue and arms, and alleged she was not serious about the peace process.

Maoist ideologue Varavara Rao, who recently visited Junglemahal (Maoist-affected forested areas in western part of the state), told IANS: “She (Banerjee) is not at all interested in peace talks, rather she has used them as a ploy to buy time. The joint forces are now more on the offensive. She hasn’t kept any of her pre-poll promises, how she can accuse the Maoists?”

“We have repeatedly urged the government to create a congenial environment but to no avail. All her promises and sops are false and she herself has no ideology,” said Rao.

Banerjee, on her second visit to Junglemahal after assuming power, Saturday said the guerrillas were hiring contract killers and accused them of jeopardising the peace process by killing innocent people.

“I am giving you seven days’ time. Please think it over. If you want a peaceful solution to the problem, no issues. We want the doors of negotiations to be open. This is a last chance. Bloodshed and negotiations cannot go together,” the chief minister said addressing a rally at the Jhargram stadium in West Midnapore district.

Delhi University professor Saroj Giri, who accompanied Rao on the Junglemahal visit, said the joint forces deployed in the area would have been withdrawn if the government genuinely wanted the peace talks to take place.

“Her visit to the Junglemahal is a gimmick to fool the people. Let her withdraw the forces and free political prisoners if she really wants the talks. The Maoists have made it very clear that she needs to fulfill these two promises for the negotiations to take place,” said Giri.

Ashok Jivan Mahato, a spokesperson for the People’s Committee Against Police Atrocities (PCAPA), a pro-Maoist tribal outfit active in junglemahal, said the economic sops showered by the government cannot heal the scars the people have got from the alleged atrocities by the forces.

“She (Banerjee) is issuing warnings and setting deadline. But what about her promises? She is unaware of the ground realities. Has she ever thought why people have taken up arms? It is the government which is jeopardising the talks and not the Maoists. Why is not the government releasing the political prisoners even after the recommendations have been made?” Mahato told IANS.

Banerjee set up a 13-member committee comprising former judge Moloy Sengupta and rights activist Sujato Bhadro among others, to review the status of detainees and those jailed in political cases.

Choton Das, one of the interlocutors, however, said the negotiations are heading in the right earnest and both the parties have shown positive intent for the talks.

“In a democracy, negotiations are the only way to solve a problem. Although the killings are regretted, this I assume will not adversely affect the negotiations. They are heading in the right direction and we are hopeful of results,” Das said.

Rights activist Binayak Sen, who himself was a political prisoner and sentenced to life imprisonment by a court, stressed the need for creating a congenial environment for the talks to take place.

“No negotiations or talks can take place under duress. There has to be a conducive environment for the same. The government needs withdraw the joint forces,” Sen told IANS.