This collector says there is hope,and he knows

The officer,who was then collector of Malkangiri,was kidnapped in February 2011 and spent nine days in Maoist captivity. He hoped that Menon would be released soon.

Krishna and Menon were born within three months of each other in 1980. Krishna,the younger of the two,is from Andhra Pradesh and made it to the IAS in 2005 and was assigned the Orissa cadre. Menon,from Tamil Nadu,joined a year later,in the Chhattisgarh cadre. Both officers got their first assignment as collector in Naxal-hit districts Krishna in Malkangiri,Menon in Sukma. They know each other professionally.

He is a brave officer,very efficient,one of the best that Chhattisgarh has, Krishna said of Menon.

That is why he was given charge of Sukma,which is the worst affected district in the entire country.

Krishna,who is now private secretary to Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh,was present in Sukma when this small town in the southern tip of Chhattisgarh became headquarters of the new district by the same name on January 16 this year.

Menon was taken hostage while on a field visit; something Krishna himself undertook regularly. We know we are pushing the boundaries but that is essential. We must take that risk. By trying to take the government to the people,we become a threat to the Maoists. Maybe a bigger threat even than the security forces. This is because we are taking away their cause from them. The biggest handle that the Maoists have with the villagers is the grievance that the government is absent from their areas, Krishna said.

The Maoists dont want development to happen. That will take away the reason for their existence. Kidnapping is also an attempt to temporarily boost the morale of their cadres and to show that they are powerful.

Krishna conceded that kidnappings were a setback,but said it was only temporary. Officers will be more careful in future but there is no alternative. There is no other way to expose the Maoists and work for the welfare of the people, he said. The Maoists have a stated policy of not getting involved with non-combatants. They are breaking their own rules.

Based on his experience,Krishna said it was likely Menon would has been taken to a place of high altitude,and that he was living in the open. There is a bigger threat to your life from snakes and and insects than from the Maoists. You have to sleep under the open sky and keep moving from one place to another depending on the security risks the Maoists perceive.

Menon is probably also having to listen constantly to Maoist ideology. Some of them are intelligent people,well-read and deeply committed to ideology. They argue their cause,speak about the atrocities committed by the security forces,the neglect of the state and so on. As a captive audience,you have to listen. With gun-toting people surrounding you,there is little choice anyway.

But Krishna says he got his chance to argue back. I used to get into these conversations. I told them about the futility of their campaign. I told them they had achieved nothing in the last 40-50 years that they have been fighting this bloody war. They listened to me but said nothing, he said.

Maoists name Prashant Bhushan and two others as mediators

Maoists emailed BBCs Salman Ravi late Monday night,naming 3 mediators: Sukma-based chief of Adivasi Mahasabha Manish Kunjam,lawyer Prashant Bhushan,and former Bastar collector BD Sharma,who now has an NGO. All have been called to Taadmetla.

Kunjam said he did not believe in Maoist methods. I am unable to mediate. However,I will cooperate to ensure Alex Paul Menons release while working from outside. We have strong objection to Maoist methods,which aim to destroy democracy.

Sharma said,I am yet to be told about the offer… I am ready to mediate,the issue has to be resolved.

The Maoists acknowledged the offer to mediate by Swami Agnivesh,but said they did not want him to be humiliated by the Chhattisgarh government. They asked mediators to bring medicines for Menon,as his health is very critical.