Azad was ‘murdered in cold blood by police’,say city intellectuals

Bhadra said that Azad’s death death was nothing but “cold blooded murder by the police” and observed,“Encounter deaths suddenly became an oft-repeated affair after the peace talks proposal was floated during the Chief Ministership of late (Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister) Y S R Rajashekhar Reddy. Azad,as a messenger of one of the parties of the proposed peace talks,should have been given safe passage by the government.”

Sanyal emphasized the need to create an environment of trustworthiness before embarking on an initiative like this,adding that “Operation Greenhunt should have been stopped for the time being at least”.

Chakrobarty said in unequivocal terms that incidents like this,which were actually calculated attempts to disrupt initiatives to establish peace,should be stopped immediately.

“Teams from the Nagpur-based Committee for Protection of Democratic Rights will go to Adilabad on a fact finding mission on July 18 and 19,” he informed.

“We are condemning the authorities’ role not only in the death of Azad but in that of every other person who has died in so called encounters,” he added.

CPM tells PM to act on Trinamool-Maoist ‘links’

New Delhi: The CPM on Friday asked the Central government to show “political will” and take action on reported links between Trinamool Congress and Maoists. In a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh,senior CPM leader Brinda Karat referred to a report in a daily claiming links between a Trinamool MP and Maoists,including supplying of arms and ammunition to the extremists.

Ready to answer unified command plan: Kishenji

Kolkata: With the Centre deciding on having unified command structures in four states to fight Maoists,top Naxal leader Kishenji on Friday said they are ready to answer the government’s move and vowed to take revenge over the killing of Cherukuri Rajkumar alias Azad.

PTI