Raising objections to the two interlocutors nominated by the Naxals for holding talks with the state government on abduction of the Italian tourists, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has appealed to the ultras to suggest alternative names.
“Amongst the three negotiators suggested by the Maoists, it is learnt that Narayan Sanyal has been convicted for life imprisonment in Ganj in Chhaatisgarh under Sections 124 (a) and 120 (b) of Indian Penal Code and has been convicted for varying jail terms under Sections 8(1), 8(3) and 8(5) of the Chhatisgarh Special Public Security Act and Section 39 (2) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. Therefore, it is not possible to accept him as a mediator in the discussion process. It is also learnt from media reports that Biswapriya Kanungo is not willing to participate in the discussions as a representative of CPI (Maoist)”, Patnaik said.
The Chief Minister clarified that the state government had no objection to the participation of Dandapani Mohanty in the discussion process. He also appealed to the Maoists to release the abducted Italian nationals.Chief Secretary B K Patnaik maintained there has been no notice of any untoward incident after the abduction of the Italian visitors. Patnaik chaired a high-level meeting at the state secretariat on Tuesday in the presence of top state officials.