The Maoist killings in the Nilambur forests appear to have created a division within the ruling and Opposition coalitions. While leaders of the Communist Party of India (CPI), the second largest partner in the Left Democratic Front (LDF) Ministry, have reiterated that they found it hard to believe the police version that it was an encounter, Leader of the Opposition Ramesh Chennithala continued to maintain that he did not believe that the Maoist leaders were killed in fake encounters.
Taking cue from CPI State secretary Kanam Rajendran’s reservations over the police action against the Maoists, CPI leader Binoy Viswom, in a post on his Facebook page, said there should be proper investigation into the killings and the issue should be discussed in the LDF committee. “Police officers who do not understand Left politics should not be allowed to cast a shadow (on the LDF government)” he said in his post.
Mr. Viswom said there might be many who might think that the LDF government was just any other government. These are people who do not understand the historical responsibility of the LDF to present a national alternative policy, he said. The political path the Maoist chose was wrong, but the Left perspective should encompass the correctness of their sense of sacrifice. The path of the Left parties was not to use arms to suppress dissenters, he said in his post.
Mr. Chennithala, even while maintaining his stance, however called upon Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan to disclose the actual facts behind the killings in the context of the growing suspicion being expressed by various quarters.
The Chief Minister’s reluctance to explain the killings has only added to the suspicion. The UDF and the Congress firmly believed that the Maoists should be confronted legally and politically. He recalled the manner in which the police handled two other Naxal leaders who were arrested during his term as the Home Minister.
KPCC president V.M. Sudheeran, in the meantime, wrote to the Chief Minister, pointing out that the Crime Branch and magisterial inquiries were not sufficient to bring out the truth about the killings. An inquiry carried by the Crime Branch, another wing of the Police Department, will not carry much credibility. Similarly, a magisterial probe by the sub-Collector, who is a government official, will not be considered impartial. Therefore, he wanted the government to order a judicial probe, preferably by a sitting judge.
