Bhubaneshwar:
In exchange for an Italian tour guide and an MLA, the Odisha government has agreed to release 27 prisoners, including eight Naxals. The hostages are being held by two rival factions of Naxals. No date has been fixed yet for the release of the prisoners. Here are 10 big facts on this story:
1. The Italian, Paolo Bosusco, who runs a tour company in Orissa, was captured by the Naxals on March 14 along with another Italian man, Claudio Colangelo, who was released 11 days later. Their kidnapping was the first time that Naxals have targeted foreigners in this eastern state. Bosusco remains in Naxal custody in Kandhamal.
2. Jhina Hikaka, an MLA from the ruling BJD party, was taken hostage on March 25. He is being kept about 400 kilometres or a 10-hour drive from Mr Bosusco. He had alleged that the government wasn't doing enough to ensure his release because he is a tribal.
3. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik told the Odisha Assembly last night that 27 prisoners will be released. He appealed to the Naxals to return the hostages "immediately, unharmed and in good health."
4. The MLA's captors had set today, April 5, as the deadline for the release of many prisoners. If that didn't happen, they had warned that the government would be responsible for the consequences. The deadline has now been extended to Saturday. Among those who will be freed is Subhashree, the wife of Naxal leader Sabysachi Panda.
5. The Naxals holding the Italian are headed by Sabysachi Panda. A rival faction called the Andhra Odisha Border Special Committee has custody of the MLA. It is headed by a man named Rama Krishna, also known as RK.
5. While 23 people are being freed in exchange for the MLA, another four will be released from prison for the Italian hostage.
7. While Panda and the government have been negotiating via mediators, the group holding the MLA had refused to have any talks with the government.
8. Panda's group has issued a series of demands over the latest hostage-taking, including the release of prisoners, a ban on tourists visiting tribal areas and the end of the government's anti-rebel operations.
9. Among the prisoners being released are 15 members of the Chasi Mulia Adivasi Sangha, a group that says it stands for tribal rights and is affiliated with the Naxals.
10. In February 2011, the Orissa state government agreed to drop charges against five suspected Maoists in exchange for two kidnapped officials, leading to criticism that the deal would encourage more abductions.