Rested and re-armed, Naxals end Andhra truce: No more talks

Somewhat taken aback, Andhra Home Minister K Jana Reddy asked the Naxalite groups to ‘‘exercise restraint.’’

He said he would go into the circumstances that made the police open fire: ‘‘I have asked the police to send me detailed reports on each encounter. If the police are at fault, action will be taken.’’

Andhra’s Congress government, immediately after taking charge last year, had opted for talks with the Naxalites, a decision which hadn’t gone down well with other states grappling with the problem. In the third week of December, even the Prime Minister, writing to mediators between the Naxalites and the state government, pointed out that display of arms and extortion demands were ‘‘causing a great deal of unease… raising fears of a virtual collapse of law and order.’’

Despite this, the PM said, the Andhra CM and Home Minister were committed to talks and ‘‘there is no intention on the part of the state government to discontinue the present understanding—neither side would undertake offensive operations against each other.’’

But in a statement today, CPI (Maoist) secretary Ramakrishna and CPI (ML-Janashakti group) leader Amar and other leaders said: ‘‘It is clear that the government is bent upon suppressing the revolutionary movement by eliminating our cadres in fake encounters. After realising this conspiracy, we have decided to withdraw from the talks.’’

‘‘It is very clear that the ruling classes will not solve the people’s problems through peaceful political means. Under these circumstances, we call upon the people to join the mass struggle to solve the problems,’’ they said.