Cops surround Naxal leaders, told to return

The episode has left both the Naxalites and the security forces seething and it could further harm the already floundering peace talks. The Naxalites are alleging that the sole purpose behind the Grey Hound ambush was to liquidate their entire leadership. Ramakrishna, for example, had emerged from the forests for the first time in three decades last year to take part in the now-rocky peace talks.

Senior Home Ministry officials in New Delhi confirmed that the Naxal leadership had been allowed go. Senior Home Ministry officials said: ‘‘Even though talks have been interrupted, back channels of communication are still open. Under such circumstances, apprehending the Naxal leaders might not have sent the right signals.’’

Officials also said that state has been asked to continue engaging the Naxals. ‘‘We hope that this gesture will help the Naxals back to the table,’’ they said.

Some 30 top leaders, including Andhra’s CPI (Maoist) state secretary Ramakrishna and representatives from Bihar and Chhattisgarh were meeting secretly, deep inside the Nallamala jungles, when they were encircled by Grey Hound commandos.

Ramakrishna managed to get in touch with Varavara Rao, poet, the Maoist spokesman and their emissary in the peace talks, on his mobile phone.

Rao told The Indian Express that Ramakrishna called him around 1 pm on Thursday to say they were completely surrounded. He said he had to seek the intervention of Union ministers from Andhra Pradesh—Dasari Narayana Rao, S Jaipal Reddy and K Chandrasekhar Rao—and State PCC chief Keshav Rao and state Home Minister K Jana Reddy.

While top politicians are now denying their role in the affair, the fact remains that the Grey Hounds aborted their operation later in the day with the Naxalites within their sights.

On January 16, the talks had collapsed as Naxalites alleged that the security forces continued to kill their men in fake encounters. The sight of the Grey Hounds led them to believe that they were about to face another such encounter.

Rao said that he and the Naxalite balladeer Gadar had an emergency meeting with Home Minister K Jana Reddy at 4 pm on Thursday and around 7 pm word got back that the Naxalites had been spared.

Said Rao: ‘‘The Home Minister and the DGP tried to explain it away saying that the Grey Hounds were on a routine mission. But we know how close they came to killing our leaders.’’ Home Minister Reddy himself would only remark: ‘‘Police officers have been told to exercise restraint.’’

The Grey Hounds, Rao said, are still in the area, though the DGP has asked the SP of Prakasam district to rein them back.

Over the past month 23 Maoists have been killed in 10 encounters, said Rao. ‘‘They call them encounters, but not a single cop was hurt in any of these,’’ he claimed.

Added K G Kannabiran, a member of the Committee for Concerned Citizens: ‘‘On the one hand they are inviting the Naxals to the negotiating table on the other hand the police action continues.’’

One security official said, however, that the police may never get another opportunity like this. ‘‘What if the talks fail? We may not be able to nab them again,’’ he said.