By IANS,
New Delhi : The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) Monday said it was against a ban on the Leftwing outfit Communist Party of India-Maoist and the rebels should be tackled instead through political and administrative measures.
Reacting to the union home ministry’s declaration of the CPI-Maoist as a terrorist outfit, CPI-M general secretary Prakash Karat told reporters here that the “Maoists must be combated politically and administratively”.
He alleged that the Trinamool Congress, the party’s arch rival in West Bengal and now a part of the ruling United Progressive Alliance, was conniving with the Maoists in the state. “It did so in Nandigram and now in Lalgarh”, Karat claimed referring to the area in West Midnapore district that is caught in Maoist violence.
Karat said the central government’s move to ban the CPI-Maoist was no solution, and “we have to isolate them (Maoists) politically. You cannot do this by police and security measures, but a combination of these measures is necessary.”
The Marxist leader said he agreed that the rebels indulged in “terrorist violence” and should be curbed administratively. He said his party had been able to check the growth of the Maoists in West Bengal and this was why the rebels were attacking its cadres and supporters in Lalgarh region.
Karat said his party’s central committee meeting had “adopted a resolution condemning widespread attacks on our members in West Bengal…53 of our comrades were killed.”