Stop political violence in Bengal: PC tells Buddha

In a blunt message to the West Bengal government to stop unabated political violence, Union Home Minister P Chidambaram on Wednesday told Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee that armed cadres of parties cannot be allowed to take law into their hands and must be reined in.

Bhattacharjee, after a 45-minute meeting with Chidambaran following a 'letter war', said his government would take steps to disarm all armed group in the state but asked Chidambaram to tell the United Progressive Alliance ally and Communist Party of India-Marxist arch rival Trinamool Congress "in no uncertain terms" that they must end their "open and direct support" to the Maoists.

"The maintenance of law and order is the responsibility of the security forces and armed cadres of any political party cannot be allowed to play any part in the discharge of this responsibility," Chidambaram told the West Bengal CM who met him at his North Block office in New Delhi.

The meeting took place weeks after the home minister and Bhattacharjee exchanged strongly worded letters on the prevailing law and order situation in the state which is due to go to polls later this year.

Chidambaram shared with the CM information and intelligence available with the central government and drew his attention to the Netai incident in which seven persons were killed allegedly by armed CPI-M cadres on January 7. "The CM assured Chidambaram that he understood the seriousness of the concern expressed him and would take appropriate steps," a home ministry spokesman said.

Later at a press conference, Bhattacharjee said that besides taking steps to disarm all armed groups, "I agreed with the home minister that the recent incident in Netai village was very unfortunate. We will ensure that such incidents do not recur".

At the same time, he attacked the Trinamool, accusing it of openly and directly associating with the Maoists. "I told the home minister that he should tell the Trinamool Congress in no uncertain terms that they must dissociate from the Maoists," Bhattacharjee said.

The CM said while earlier the Trinamool Congress were having "secret contacts" with Maoists and giving them "covert support", now all that is in the open. "They are openly and directly associating with Maoists to foment trouble there. We have confirmed it from different sources, including those (Maoists leaders) who have been arrested," he alleged.

Bhattacharjee claimed the Trinamool Congress and Maoists and their front organisations were holding joint public meetings including two in the recent past and that some Trinamool leaders were also "caught recently escorting Maoists", injured in encounters with joint forces, for medical treatment in Orissa.

In his letter to Bhattacharjee last month, Chidambaram had asked him to take immediate action to stop the violence, saying it pointed to a "virtual collapse" of law and order in West Bengal.