Over 200 People Taken Hostage by Maoists Ahead of PM Modi's Visit in Dantewada

Raipur: Over 200 people were taken hostage by Maoists ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit in Chhattisgarh's Dantewada on Saturday. The incident took place near Jiram valley - around 60 km from the site where the Prime Minister addressed a public meeting.

This was where in 2013, Maoists had massacred a convoy of Congress leaders.

Last night, around 11 pm, a group of Maoists came to Marenga village. They rounded up the villagers - barring senior citizens, women and children -- and took them away, said the Station House Officer of Tongpal, Avinash.

The abduction was also meant to stop development work in the area, he said. The villagers were working as labourers for the construction of a bridge nearby. They had also skipped several meetings the Maoists had called in the area.   

Confirming the situation, Chief Minister Raman Singh said, "The local authorities are working on the issue as of now".

Later, during his address at the meeting, PM Modi exhorted the Maoists to "put down guns and take up the plough". Violence, he said, was not the answer.

Asking the people to be patient, he said, "I am sure that humanity exists in people who indulge in such activities and they will change (Maoists)."

The Congress accused the Central and state governments of failing to maintain internal security. "The Maoists have given a strong message," said state Congress president Bhupesh Baghel. "The Congress is deeply concerned... We remember how a convoy of Congress officials was blown up."

Earlier, the Maoists had declared a boycott on the Prime Minister's visit, exhorting villagers not to attend the meeting. On Friday, they chopped a tree and used it to block a road, put up posters registering their protest, and hung effigies of Mr Modi and Chief Minister Raman Singh.

Mr Modi is the first Prime Minister after Rajiv Gandhi to visit Dantewada to inaugurate development projects.Today, he inaugurated two projects worth Rs. 24,000 crore - a steel plant in Dantewada's Dilmili village and the second phase of a 140 km railway line from Raoghat to Jagdalpur.