Cong calls for wiping out Naxals

Asked about the BJPs assertion that it was a war that should be fought to the finish,she said although she would not use the same words,certainly,it should be destroyed. This menace has to be stopped.

The ruling party,which used to see Naxals as misguided youth,also made a shift in its stance on how to tackle the menace. The Congress used to maintain that while violence by Naxalites had to be dealt with,socio-economic factors responsible for its rise should also be taken into account at the same time.

The ruling party spokesperson was categorical on Wednesday: Socio-economic issues will be tackled but a long-term vision needs to be taken for this. The immediate priority was to wipe out Naxal insurgency. Party sources said in the context of the gruesome killing of CRPF personnel,it was not the time to talk about socio-economic issues.

Expressing condolence to the bereaved families,the Congress spokesperson said the outrageous attack on security forces by Maoists was a direct challenge to the Constitutional principles of our democracy.

It is absolutely vital and the most important challenge before out polity now to wipe out the menace of Maoist insurgency. Central government should take all steps to ensure that any such attacks are prevented in future and to wipe out Maoist challenge. All state governments should give fullest cooperation in this, she said.

We believe that the government has taken all possible steps. After a serious incident like this,I am sure the government will go into why it took place. Certainly,the government will be called upon to see its strategy. We are fully behind the government, said Natarajan.

Centre cant blame states,says CPM

The CPM on Wednesday told Union Home Minister P Chidambaram to stop throwing the responsibility of tackling Maoist activities on states and instead take up the responsibility of ensuring coordinated response.

The CPM has been waiting for an opportunity to get even with Chidambaram for his buck stops with you salvo at Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee. In the light of the Maoist attack in Dantewada,CPM did not mince words,pointing out that the minister should give up the approach of putting the responsibility on states blaming them for the consequences of Maoist depredations.

Given the fact that the Maoists are conducting their major armed operations in seven states,it becomes the responsibility of the Central government to ensure a coordinated response and for providing adequate assistance through the Central police forces, the CPM Politburo said.

It said regrettably,Chidambaram had been prone to throw the responsibility onto states and to blame them for the consequences of the Maoist depredations. Such an approach should be given up and proper coordination between the Centre and states concerned should be established.

Bhattacharjee and the CPM in Bengal have already hit back at Chidambaram for his remarks during a visit to Lalgarh. CPM said the attack in Dantewada was a reminder that no state could singly tackle Maoist violence. It felt the Left-wing insurgents should also be fought politically and ideologically.

BJP for crackdown on sympathisers

The BJP kept up its attack on the UPA government on the issue of Red Terror on Wednesday and demanded that the government clamp down on Maoist sympathisers,who,in the garb of civil society activists,further the cause of Maoists but go silent when innocent citizens are felled by them. The party asserted that any talk of dialogue with Naxalites,when their stated sole objective was to end parliamentary democracy,was patently absurd.

Do victims of Naxal violence have some human rights too or not?, BJP spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad asked. Why are the self-appointed guardians of human rights silent on the massacre? They are the sophisticated face of Naxal violence. Some self-appointed guardians of Naxalites talk of human rights and write lengthy articles in magazines. When two or ten Naxals are killed they criticise it,but when Naxals kill innocent people they maintain a conspicuous silence, he said. The idea of India is alien to the Naxals,and democratic norms,human lives and values have no place in their scheme of things. Home Minister P Chidambaram often says if the Naxals abjure violence we can talk. This is an interesting phrase, he said,taking a dig at the Home Minister.

Calling for a determined view and a co-ordinated action against Naxals,Prasad reiterated BJPs unqualified support to the Centre on measures to weed out Naxals but said the onus of what measures need to be taken,including use of Army,Air Force,lies with the Centre.