Mamata hopes good sense to prevail upon Maoists

PTI

Balarampur (WB), 12 December 2011: Hoping that ’good sense’ would still prevail among Maoists who have rejected her ultimatum to surrender, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday sounded a warning that her patience was wearing thin.

 

"I don’t wants guns against guns, but if necessary I will silence their guns. How many guns and landmines do they have?" Banerjee said on her third visit to junglemahal.

 

"I have given lot of time and if good sense prevails I have no objection. I will give you food, jobs, houses and roads and consider your cases."

 

Referring to the reported hit list of her party leaders drawn up by Maoists, she asked "Do you want to kill me? (union minister) Mukul (Roy)? Or (MP) Subhendu (Adhikary)?"

 

Reminding maoists that her government had suspended the operations by the joint security forces for four months expecting them to come forward with demands for the people of junglemahal, she said, "You are not my enemies, but those who kill are my enemies".

 

"I had hoped that you would demand rice for the poor, roads and jobs. If you have the guts stop killing covertly and come out into the open. If people unitedly resist you they will drive out the killers. I will not allow the Ayodhya Hills here to be bloodied anymore," she said here in Purulia district.

 

Presenting the aged and frail-looking mother of Trinanool Congress leader Jitu Singh Sardar killed in Balarampur last week, at the rally here in Purulia district she said "Is this poor old lady a class enemy?

 

"Why should you kill poor people like cowards? Is it Stalinism or Maoism? Politics is not done under cover of darkness," she said dubbing Maoists as ’supari killers’.

 

Announcing that people who died fighting Maoists would be looked after by her government, she urged villagers not to be scared of Maoists and asked for building up of resistance groups in every village.

 

Banerjee said if Maoists in Nepal could join democracy and the government, why those here were resorting to violence and killing.

 

The chief minister also warned Maoist sympathisers, "We are keeping a tab on those helping Maoists."

 

She said that Maoists were floating new organisations as a new strategy such as All Bengal Students Union, Chetna Manch and Nari Adhikar Raksha.

 

Banerjee announced sops including jobs, development initiatives like medical colleges, polytechnics, a stadium and training centres for preparing youths for employment.

 

Stating that the tourism industry would be developed in the Ayodhya hills, she said that 20 factories would be built in the district to provide employment.