Conceding eight of the 14 demands of the Maoists on the second day of talks with the rebel-chosen mediators, the Orissa government said it was confident of securing early release of abducted Malkangiri Collector R V Krishna and a junior engineer.
Home Secretary U N Behera said while eight demands of the Maoists were met, final talks on the remaining six conditions would be held on Tuesday. "I am confident now that both the collector and junior engineer Pabitra Majhi will be released very soon," he told reporters after two days of talks with Maoist-chosen mediators for release of the two abducted on February 16.
Among the issues resolved during the meeting were recognising Konda Reddy and Nokadora communities as Scheduled Tribe, steps for scrapping Pollavaram multi-purpose dam project in Andhra Pradesh, issue of land pattas to tribals whose land had allegedly been taken away in Malkangiri and Koraput, extension of a canal project in Malkangiri and compensation to families of two persons who died in jail custody due to alleged torture in Koraput, he said.
The government would also take steps for the release of two central committee members of CPI-Maoist Sila Di and Padma lodged in Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh jails, Behera said. The issue of stoppage of bauxite mining in Mali and Deomali hills in Koraput and Rayagada districts and cancellation of MoUs with multinational companies were also resolved.
Talks with the mediators Professor G Hargopal, Professor Someswar Rao and Dandapani Mohanty have "progressed well," Behera said. "We have been assured by the mediators that Krishna's health is fine and there is no cause of concern," he said adding both the hostages are safe and secure. In a related development, five hardcore Maoists, including Ganti Prasadam, who has about 100 cases against him in Andhra Pradesh and Orissa, moved the Orissa High Court for bail after a similar plea was rejected by a lower court.
The Maoists, who have sought their release as one of the conditions for safe return of the two, called a bandh to press their demand but it evoked little response. As Krishna, a 2005 batch IAS officer, and Majhi spent the sixth day in captivity, the mediators were keen that certain jailed ultras like Ganti Prasadam joined the negotiation process to resolve the hostage crisis.
The release of jailed Maoists was discussed at length, official sources said, adding it was possible that the bail plea of the rebels would not be opposed by the government.
Having already conceding a majority of the demands of the Maoists, Orissa government had made it clear that there would be no combing operation against them till the conclusion of the negotiations. The operation was halted on February 17, a day after the 30-year-old collector and the engineer were abducted.
Ganti Prasadam, who was arrested by Orissa Police and lodged in jail on sedition charges, told his lawyer Nihar Ranjan Patnaik that he was interested in joining the talks with the government for the release of the abducted officials. Hargopal said releasing leaders like Ganti Prasadam could play a significant role in negotiations with Maoists for the release of the hostages.
The bail plea of Ganti Prasadam, Padma, wife of top naxal leader Ramakrishna, and three others is likely to be heard on February 23. Prasadam was brought to Koraput from a jail in Andhra Pradesh yesterday and produced before a court there which rejected his bail plea and sent him to jail.
An order on the bail plea of another rebel Sriramulu Srinivasulu is likely to be pronounced by a fast track court in Malkangiri. Meanwhile, National Human Rights Commission appealed to the Maoists to free the IAS officer and the junior engineer.
Expressing deep concern over their abduction, the NHRC also hoped that human rights activists in the country would try to secure their release immediately. Though the whereabouts of the hostages were not known, the mediators have assured the Orissa government that the two would not be harmed and that the rebels would refrain from violence as long as negotiations are underway.
The sources said the abducted officials were kept at some remote village in Chitrakonda area bordering Andhra Pradesh and the Maoists were frequently shifting the two men from one place to another. The Maoist call for a bandh did not affect normal life in the state. However, government buses went off the roads in some areas of districts like Gajapati, Koraput, Rayagada and Kandhamal, sources said.
Ever since the abduction, normal life has come to a standstill in Malkangiri district with people from all walks of life showing solidarity with Krishna and Majhi by closing shops and markets and taking out rallies for their release. Schools, colleges and offices were closed as people held peace processions, prayer meetings and signature campaigns in protest.
