The draft lays down 17 charges against 15 accused, including human rights and civil liberties activists, and they have been sought to be charged under various sections of the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
Terrorists and insurgents are getting "public support" in some parts of the country and unless this is stopped, India will continue to get hit by acts of terrorism.
Nothing has changed from the day we fought for a revolution and today. The issues are the same, and they are also committing the same foolishness, former Naxalite Philip M Prasad tells rediff.com's Shobha Warrier
Thirteen Central Reserve Police Force personnel, including two officers were killed in a Maoist attack in the Chintagufa area in Chhattisgarh's Sukhma while they were on an area domination exercise. According to reports, the attackers used locals as human shields to prevent CRPF retaliation.
As a Naxal area commander in the violence-hit Keonjhar district in Odisha, Udam Sundhi once aimed to overthrow the Indian government. Today, as a home guard, he tries to preserve law and order in the very same area he once terrorised. Rediff.com's Toral Varia and Photographer Reuben N V bring you the fascinating story of this former Left-wing ultra.
Condemning the Maoist attack on a Congress rally in Chhattisgarh, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has said that Maoism is a serious challenge to Indian democracy and joint efforts are being made to combat it.
"We have not yet decided about the quantum of force to use against Maoists, said a senior government functionary while reacting to home Minister P Chidambaram's proposed plan to use air power against the Maoists within the country. He said, " We are debating about whether we should use violence to protect the poor? If so, what should be quantum of force to use against them? "
While highhanded action by paramilitary and other security agencies has been effective in quelling violence in Lalgarh recently, government sources have told ANI that they are not in favour of using brutal force.
Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and major political parties welcomed any dialogue with Naxals provided they abjure violence. Patnaik, whose state has faced Naxal attacks including on police personnel, said "Repeatedly I have said they should shun violence. Then a dialogue is possible."
The Supreme Court on Friday rejected the NIA's application and ordered social activist Gautam Navlakha to be put under house arrest within 24-hours after shifting him from Taloja jail in Navi Mumbai.
In the last ten years, 96 per cent of the sedition cases against 405 individuals pertained to making critical remarks against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, points out Ramesh Menon, author, Modi Demystified: The Making Of A Prime Minister.
Around 30 per cent polling was recorded till noon on Tuesday in 72 constituencies spread over 19 districts of Chhattisgarh where voting for the second and last phase of Assembly polls is underway.
Anti-Naxal operations will be intensified in the aftermath of the Maoist attack on Congress leaders, the government said on Tuesday but ruled out holding peace talks with the extremists unless they abjure violence.
Rajnath Singh, under whose stewardship the Bharatiya Janata Party has stormed to power with its highest-ever tally, took charge as the Union home minister.
Toral Varia and photographer Reuben Verghese, who travelled to the Naxal-infested Keonjhar district of Orissa, return with tales of discrimination, disillusionment and daring escapes
'Whenever Dalits have agitated on the streets, the government has blamed Naxalites.'
Urging youngsters who have been radicalised to give up violence, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said they should shun guns and get a plough in its place to transform their lives.
A magnificent display of India's cultural diversity through colourful parades across the length and breadth of the country marked the 71st Republic Day celebrations on Sunday which passed off peacefully, barring in Upper Assam, which was rocked by four explosions within a span of 10 minutes.
Pon Radhakrishnan also stated that Naxals, Maoists and Muslim extremists may have intruded into some of the media houses too.
Rao was taken into custody in Hyderabad on Saturday after his house arrest ended on November 15 and his petition to quash the transit remand was disposed of by a court there on November 16.
He also said the Naxals were spreading in urban areas and were trying to mislead the people.
With Maoist violence continuing unabated, Home Minister P Chidambaram has said the country will be able to counter the menace by 2013. "We must meet the challenge to fight against Maoists and terrorism in the next two-to-three-years.
The government on Tuesday, condemned the "mindless acts" of violence by Maoists during the 48-hour bandh call given by them in eight states, saying Naxals were not serious about their unilateral ceasefire call."It is clear the CPI( Maoist) are not serious about their pronouncement of stopping violence and having a meaningful dialogue with the government of India on various issues.
'More members of the Indian Armed Forces have died in Kashmir, North East and Naxal areas than in the 1962 and 1971 wars against Pakistan combined. These deaths are the result of political failure and not war.'
Congress's Rajya Sabha MP and chief interlocutor of the Andhra Pradesh government who talked to the then PWG in 2004-05 speaks about his experience of tackling Maoism in the state and what could be done to curb the growing menace in India's central heartland.
Maoists took 250 villagers hostage in Sukma district of Chhattisgarh hours before Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to neighbouring Dantewada but freed all the captives late on Saturday night barring one who was beaten to death after being tried in a 'people's court'.
He took up the causes of tribals marginalised after their lands has been taken over for dams, mines and townships, often without their consent.
For this dispensation, ideas are dangerous. Those who propagate liberalism and democratic traditions are even more dangerous, observes Rashme Sehgal.
The Andhra Pradesh chief minister became emotional when TDP workers expressed concern about well-being.
Singh was answering a query on the Supreme Court's comments that 'dissent is the safety valve of democracy. If you don't allow the safety valve pressure cooker will burst'.
Jammu and Kashmir is no longer the hot bed of militancy and separatist violence in the country as the conflict-ridden Northeastern states have surpassed it in respect of insurgency-related violence and civilian casualties.
During 2007, 139 civilians and 95 security personnel were killed in Jammu and Kashmir, 427 civilians and 63 security personnel in north-eastern states and 383 civilians and 188 security personnel in naxal-hit states.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday declared that he would like to run the country on the basis of consensus and not on majority in Parliament and called for a 10-year moratorium on caste and communal violence.
Shah said after the SC refusal to interfere with the arrests of five activists in the Koregaon-Bhima violence case
With security forces preparing to launch a multi-state coordinated offensive against Naxals, Home Minister P Chidambaram on Friday said they need to ensure that the poor and tribals do not suffer in the fight against Maoist violence. "While you should be firm, decisive and unrelenting in dealing with those who indulge in violence, you should show a great degree of sensitivity, patience and maturity to the poor people, especially the tribals," Chidambaram said.
A prominent Naxal leader on Thursday rejected Union Home Minister P Chidambaram's call to Maoists to abjure violence and take the path of democracy, saying there was no question of giving up arms.Defending their armed struggle, Kisenji told PTI over the phone from an undisclosed location, "There will be arms in the hands of the people's liberation army as long as the state uses arms to throttle the voice of the people."He said, "The state should stop killing its own people."
The Pricol and Graziono cases are extreme ones, but there has been a steady rise in the number of worker disputes.
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