PWG offers to talk if Chhattisgarh ceases anti-Naxal operations

It’s hardly been a few months since the PWG’s peace talks with the Andhra Pradesh government collapsed. Now, the outfit has offered to hold peace talks with the Chhattisgarh government if it were to cease all anti-Naxal operations in the state.

Reacting to its latest overtures, Chief Minister Ajit Jogi said: ‘‘We certainly want peace in the state. So, all our options are open.’’ He recalls having spoken to Andhra Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu to enlarge the scope of the Hyderabad talks to cover Chhattisgarh.

But the failure of the talks in Andhra dashed all our hopes, he said. ‘‘Even now, all these offers are in the newspapers only. No one has approached us with a proposal so far. When such an offer comes to us, we will take a decision as we are not averse to talks,’’ he said.