By IANS,
Kolkata : The West Bengal government Friday claimed that some top Maoist leaders including Kishanjee may have fled Lalgarh and said it has sought more central forces to combat the entrenched Left radicals in the area.
“I feel a few Maoists have fled that area. Kishanjee may have gone somewhere else. But it is not yet confirmed,” state Home Secretary Ardhendu Sen told reporters at the state secretariat here.
Kishanjee alias K. Koteshwar Rao, a politburo member of the Communist Party of India-Maoist, has been staying at Lalgarh for the past few years.
Sen replied in the affirmative when asked whether the state had asked the centre for more forces, but refused to elaborate.
The top bureaucrat parried a question on how long the operation to flush out the rebels from Lalgarh in West Midnapore district will continue, saying “We have not set any target.”
Sen said more than 1,000 families who have fled their homes in the region and taken shelter elsewhere were being given relief.
He also said the state government has not received any official request for negotiation on the Lalgarh issue.
“The possibility of dialogue is always there. We have not received any request of negotiations from anybody. If we receive such a request, we will take a decision at an appropriate time.”