CPM for 'coordinated action' against Naxals

The Communist Party of India-Marxist on Wednesday said the brutal Maoist attack in Dantewada, in which 76 security personnel were killed, is a reminder that no state government can single-handedly tackle Naxal violence and called for a coordinated action by the Centre and the states.

"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," it said, while condemning Tuesday's attack.

"Regrettably, the Union home minister has been prone to throw the responsibility on to the state governments 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 the states concerned should be established," the party's politburo said in a statement.

The party also sought to blame the government on its socio-economic policies which, it claimed, were resulting in the tribals being ousted from their abode due to mining.

It noted that the Maoists were concentrating their activities where the tribal people live in the forest and hilly areas.

"It is in these areas of Jharkhand, Chattisgarh, Orissa and Andhra Pradesh inhabited by the adivasis that large tracts of land are being handed over to foreign and Indian companies for mining operations," it noted.

"Instead of adopting measures for the socio-economic development of such regions, the policies of the Central government are harming the interests of the tribal people," it said.

The party said the displacement of tribals and the loss of their livelihood and habitats were a direct result of the policy of the Centre to 'indiscriminately throw open all these areas for mining operations, legal and illegal. This must be stopped immediately.'

The Left party said it was 'equally important' to expose Maoists for their disruptive activities and their methods of terrorising and intimidating the people.

"The tribal people whom they claim to be fighting for are the worst victims of such tactics. The Maoists have to be fought politically by mobilising the people against them," the party said.