Left outfit dubs Odisha Maoist leader’s arrest a ‘cowardly act’

Odisha Sun Times Bureau
Rayagada, July 21:

The CPI- Marxist-Leninist-Maoist (CPI-MLM), the new outfit floated recently by Odisha Maoist leader Sabyasachi Panda ,has dubbed the arrest of their top leader as “an act of cowardice” by the Odisha government.

In a letter released to the media on Sunday, leader of the CPI (MLM) Central Committee, Shekhar has said Panda was a victim of conspiracy and betrayal.

Stating that the state government’s earlier call to Panda to give up arms and work for the welfare of the people was a pretentious move, he said although Panda had responded to the appeal and had kept himself away from any form of violence. However, the government made all efforts to arrest him by conducting a series of raids and fake encounters from Bhaliaguda to Salimagochha and had even planned to eliminate him, the CPI-MLM release said.

Condemning the arrest of Panda as a dastardly act on the part of the state government, Sekhar made it clear that CPI-MLM outfit is determined to continue the movement started by Panda.

Sabyasachi had launched the new left wing oufit CPI-MLM barely six weeks before his arrest with the help of a couple of small Maoist groups in Bengal and the CPI-ML (Janshakti) and was reportedly making efforts to join hands with the CPI-Maoist, which had expelled him in 2012.