Bengal Maoists ready for talks, says interlocutor
September 3rd, 2011 - 10:48 pm ICT by IANS
Kolkata, Sep 3 (IANS) A team of interlocutors engaged by the West Bengal government to initiate talks with the Maoists Saturday said the rebels are ready for talks and to abjure violence during the process.
“We were given the responsibility by the government to initiate the peace talks and start the negotiations. We met the Maoist groups, they are ready for talks and have said that they have abjured violence. The Maoists have agreed not to take up arms during the peace process,? Choton Das, one of the interlocutors, told IANS.
A civil rights group, the Bandimukti Committee, was last week given responsibility by the Mamata Banerjee government to initiate peace talks with the Maoists. The members of the committee had then said they would act as interlocutors.
A six-member team of interlocutors led by civil rights activist Sujato Bhadra and Choton Das Saturday held a meeting with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee at the state secretariat and conveyed the message of the Maoists regarding their agreement for the peace talks.
?The main stake holders (Maoists) in Junglemahal said that joint forces operation should be stopped in the state. We have conveyed this message to the chief minister, to which she said that the joint forces operation has already been stalled,? said Das.
The date and other modalities for the talks have not been decided yet, he added.
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Tags: bhadra, chief minister, civil rights activist, civil rights group, interlocutor, interlocutors, mamata banerjee, maoist, maoists, member team, modalities, negotiations, peace process, peace talks, rebels, secretariat, stake holders, state secretariat, violence, west bengal government