Latest news with #PeaceDialogueCommittee
New Indian Express
22-05-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
State may not stop after eradicating Maoists, says Civil rights activist Prof G Haragopal
HYDERABAD: Civil rights activist Prof G Haragopal, a member of the Peace Dialogue Committee that recently urged Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy to initiate talks with the banned CPI (Maoist), expressed serious concern over the Union government's use of force in eliminating top Maoist leader Nambala Keshava Rao and the subsequent celebration of the act. Speaking to TNIE, Haragopal said the questions raised by the Maoist movement cannot be answered through encounters. 'Once the state becomes accustomed to using firearms, it may not stop even after 'eradicating' the Maoist party, as Union Home Minister Amit Shah put it. The same force can then be turned against the Opposition, dissenters and civil society,' he warned. Haragopal said there was an opportunity to arrest Keshava Rao, just as the founder of the movement, Kondapalli Seetharamaiah, was arrested and not killed. 'The government should have treated him as the leader of a political outfit. But instead, they vowed to 'eradicate' them, and this killing is part of that approach. Once the state normalises eliminating opponents, the rule of law and constitutional democracy will be its casualties,' he said.
New Indian Express
22-05-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Telangana may not stop after eradicating Maoists, says Civil rights activist Prof G Haragopal
HYDERABAD: Civil rights activist Prof G Haragopal, a member of the Peace Dialogue Committee that recently urged Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy to initiate talks with the banned CPI (Maoist), expressed serious concern over the Union government's use of force in eliminating top Maoist leader Nambala Keshava Rao and the subsequent celebration of the act. Speaking to TNIE, Haragopal said the questions raised by the Maoist movement cannot be answered through encounters. 'Once the state becomes accustomed to using firearms, it may not stop even after 'eradicating' the Maoist party, as Union Home Minister Amit Shah put it. The same force can then be turned against the Opposition, dissenters and civil society,' he warned. Haragopal said there was an opportunity to arrest Keshava Rao, just as the founder of the movement, Kondapalli Seetharamaiah, was arrested and not killed. 'The government should have treated him as the leader of a political outfit. But instead, they vowed to 'eradicate' them, and this killing is part of that approach. Once the state normalises eliminating opponents, the rule of law and constitutional democracy will be its casualties,' he said.
New Indian Express
02-05-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
CM Revanth Reddy seeks Congress high command's guidance on holding talks with Maoists
HYDERABAD: FavoUring the idea of holding talks with Maoists, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy has sought the advice and stand of the Congress high command. According to sources, the CM wrote a letter to AICC President Mallikarjuna Kharge on the matter. It may be recalled that a delegation led by Peace Dialogue Committee convener Justice Chandra Kumar recently met with the CM, urging him to take the initiative in facilitating talks between the Maoists and the Centre. Following that meeting, the CM approached the party high command for guidance. Sources stated: 'The CM has written to Kharge seeking the party's stand. He also sought advice and direction on how to proceed.' The letter reportedly included references to past experiences, including the 2004 talks held with the then People's War group in united AP. Speaking to the media on Thursday, the CM said: 'Our intention is to hold talks. However, we will take an official decision only after discussing the issue with the party high command.' He emphasised that dialogue is a core part of the Congress party's ideology, adding, 'We believe dialogue is the only solution to any problem.'
Hans India
01-05-2025
- Politics
- Hans India
Congress leader Keshava Rao urges Centre to hold peace talks with Maoists
Hyderabad: Senior Congress leader and Telangana government advisor K. Keshava Rao has urged the Centre to stop 'Operation Kagar' and hold peace talks with Maoists. The former MP strongly resented the anti-Maoist operation launched by the Union Home Ministry. He said that while violence has no place in democracy, the state must handle Maoist violence tactfully. He admitted that police and armed forces cannot remain silent to violence by the extremists. Keshava Rao appealed to the Union Government to respond favourably to the offer of extremist groups to open a dialogue for peace. He said such talks precede the extremists giving up their weapons and violence as an ideology. 'A meaningful dialogue is the best way to stop violence,' he added. The senior leader reminded the Centre of the fruitful experience of Andhra Pradesh holding such talks in 2005, which resulted in a drastic decline in Maoist violence. 'It is today restricted to a few areas bordering Chhattisgarh in Telangana. The violence must stop and must be stopped,' he added. Meanwhile, responding to a query at a press conference, Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy said his government and the Congress party are against violence. 'We are against all forms of violence, whether it is by the state, the common man or groups. There should be no violence,' he said. CM Revanth Reddy said that the Congress party believes that any issue, however big it may be, can be addressed through talks. He reiterated that the government would make a decision after consultation with the party's central leadership. He was asked about the request by the Peace Dialogue Committee to take the initiative to convince the Centre to stop the operation and hold talks with the Maoists. The Peace Dialogue Committee, headed by retired high court judge Justice Chandra Kumar, met the Chief Minister on April 27 and requested him to take the initiative to ensure that the Centre holds peace talks with the Maoists. The Committee members urged the Chief Minister to persuade the Centre to agree to a ceasefire. CM Reddy told them that he would consult former home minister and senior leader K. Jana Reddy, who has experience in conducting talks with Maoists. The Chief Minister told the Peace Committee leaders that his government views Naxalism purely from a social perspective, not as a law and order issue. The next day (April 28), he discussed the issue with Jana Reddy and Keshava Rao and later told media persons that a decision would be taken after consultation with the party's central leadership.
New Indian Express
29-04-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Will follow high command line on Operation Kagar: Telangana CM
HYDERABAD: Making it clear that his government will announce its stand on Operation Kagar once the party high command takes a decision, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Monday opined that there should be a nationwide discussion on the issue. It may be recalled that the Peace Dialogue Committee met the chief minister and requested him to take the initiative for holding peace talks between the Following that, the chief minister met government adviser K Keshava Rao and former minister K Jana Reddy and discussed the committee's demand for peace talks with Maoists. In an informal conversation with reporters later, Revanth responded to the BRS's public meeting on Sunday by saying: 'KCR (former chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao) is feeling insecure. Neither is there any clarity nor anything new in his speech. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and KCR will speak as per their political needs.' He added that people speak about administration only six months before elections. 'I am receiving demands to arrest BRS leaders. However, I will act as per the law,' the chief minister asserted. Admitting that the Congress government has been lagging in implementing some works, he stated there was a need to expedite implementation of schemes. Revanth stated that they have streamlined the administration and are continuing with some officials in key posts due to lack of options. 'We are lagging behind in publicising the work done in the last 15 months,' Revanth added. 'No gap between me and Rahul' 'It is not good for some MLAs to sit in Hyderabad and pass the time. They should go to the people and publicise the schemes being implemented by our government,' Revanth said. He stressed that leaders should be patient for posts and positions or else they will lose opportunities. 'There is a good relationship between me and Rahul Gandhi. It is not true that there is a gap between us,' he stressed, in response to a query.
