Maoist sympathisers in West Bengal want political prisoners released

KOLKATA: They had helped Mamata Banerjee when she was alone and cornered in the opposition to turn the tide of public opinion against the Marxists and now all they want is freedom for their comrades. Naxalite factions in Bengal are mounting pressure on the chief minister for the release of more than 450 political prisoners held in jails across the state.
Their move was prompted by a West Midnapore court's recent verdict of life imprisonment for Chhatradhar Mahato, a pro-Maoist activist arrested under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in September 2009 by the previous Left Front government. Mahato had formed the Peoples Committee Against Police Atrocities (PCPA) in 2008. Banerjee, while in the opposition, had shared a platform with Mahato and also used PCPA to further her cause. Naxalites now accuse Banerjee of using PCPA to uproot her political rivals.

The PCPA was formed primarily to protect villagers from police action after a November 2008 attack on a convoy of former Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and the then Union Minister for Steel Ramvilas Paswan. That attack in West Midnapore district was blamed on the Maoists.

"Mahato is the first political activist charged with the UAPA by the previous Left Front government. He has been sentenced to life imprisonment during the regime of Mamata Banerjee's government. There were many like Mahato who helped the then opposition party – Trinamool Congress – to bring changes in Bengal by uprooting the Marxist government. But now she is completely ignoring them," said Sujato Bhadra, a human rights activist and member of a committee set up by Banerjee’s government to make recommendations for the release of political prisoners.

"Mamata Banerjee had condemned the killing of Maoist leader Azad. She also demanded withdrawal of central forces from Jangalmahal when she was in the opposition. But Maoist leader Kishenji was killed within six months of Mamata's coming to power. Central forces are still there in Jangalmahal even though there has not been any Maoist activism," he told ET.

Bhadra said the committee which he was part of submitted its recommendations in June 2012, but the government had dumped the report. "I am sorry to say that after coming to power, she did not keep the promises she made to political activists like Mahato," Bhadra said.

Partha Ghosh, state secretary of the CPI ML (Liberation), an overground Naxalite faction, told ET that they had submitted a list of 477 political prisoners to the government.

"Four years have passed after Mamata became chief minister. But her government is totally ignoring the plight of political activists, many of whom had helped her to mobilise public opinion against the Marxists which ruled Bengal for 34 years," Ghosh said. "Now, after coming to power, she is totally ignoring those forces. We apprehend Mamata's government, which is now enjoying Narendra Modi's support, would be more ruthless to the Left democratic organisations than the Marxists," he said.

Naxalite factions are now trying to mobilise public support to mount pressure on the state government. On Wednesday, CPI ML (Liberation) held a rally here to raise the issue.