Kolkata: The CPI(M) on Sunday said elimination
of Kishenji would not solve the Maoist problem in Jangalmahal
and peace could be restored there by tackling the law and
order problem, helping economic development and engaging the
ultras politically.
''Elimination of a single individual will not solve the
problem,'' CPI(M) Politburo member Sitaram Yechuri told
newsmen when asked if elimination of Kishenji would end the
Maoist problem in Jangalmahal.
He said, ''In order to bring an end to the problem,
three issues need to be tackled. There is the issue of law and
order. All violence has to be stopped. And the government must
engage Maoists politically and remove people's economic
backwardness.''
He stressed that economic backwardness provided a
'thriving ground' for Maoist activities.
''Unless these three things are combined, the (Maoist)
problem cannot be solved,'' Yechuri said.
Soon after Kishenji's death on Thursday, CPI(M) Central
Committee member and Leader of the Opposition in West Bengal
Assembly Surjya Kanta Mishra had said there was no reason to
think that the Maoists would lose their punch with his death.
"Kishenji as an individual does not matter, because
(the Maoists) are supported by anti-national, reactionary
forces,'' Mishra had said.
PTI
First Published: Sunday, November 27, 2011, 21:13