Bhubaneswar:
The discussion between the Maoist interlocutors and the Odisha government over the release of the two abducted Italian nationals has been suspended indefinitely after an MLA of the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD), Jhina Hikaka, was abducted from Koraput district today.
Mr Hikaka, legislator from Laxmipur, was returning home from Koraput when more than 100 armed rebels stopped his vehicle near Toyaput at around 1 am. While his personal security officer (PSO) and driver were allowed to leave, Mr Hikaka was taken away into the nearby forest by the ultras at gunpoint. Sources have told NDTV that factional rivalry between Maoists is likely the reason behind the MLA's abduction.
The PSO and the driver informed the Laxmipur police station about the incident, Koraput Superintendent of Police Avinash Kumar said, adding that steps have been initiated to ascertain the whereabouts of the legislator. "They have dug up the road to delay search and rescue operations," he added.
Following the suspension of talks, the two Maoist-appointed negotiators pulled out of the parleys. The Odisha government has now asked the Maoists to nominate new negotiators.
"Two negotiators nominated by Maoists, Dr B D Sharma and Mr Dandapani Mohanty have decided not to remain negotiators ... because they consider that there is no conducive atmosphere for talks," Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik told reporters after reviewing the situation with top officials and police.
Expressing hope that Maoists would name fresh negotiators, Mr Patnaik said the talks would be held in state capital Bhubaneswar for release of all the three hostages.
The state government's side would be represented by the same set of negotiators -- Home Secretary U N Behera, Panchayati Raj Secretary P K Jena and ST, SC Development Secretary Santosh K Sarangi, he said.
Mr Patnaik also issued a fresh appeal to Maoists to immediately release the MLA and the two Italians on humanitarian grounds.
Two Italian nationals - 54-year-old Bosusco Paolo and 61-year-old Claudio Colangelo - were abducted from the border of Ganjam and communally sensitive Kandhamal district on March 14. The 13 demands the rebels set for their release include a ban on the visit of tourists to the tribal areas; halt on anti-Maoist operations and release of several prisoners.
Sources say Maoist leader Sabyasachi Panda, who has been sidelined in the top echelons of the Maoists leadership for the past 18 months, may have engineered the abductions of the two Italians in an attempt to assert his hold over the area. They add that the larger Andhra-Orissa-Border Zonal Committee of the Maoists, active in the undivided Koraput district of Odisha and neighbouring Andhra areas (the original base of the Naxals) may have abducted the MLA in an attempt to put down Sabyasachi. This group is also suspected to be behind the killing of an assistant sub inspector in the Malkangiri district two days ago.
(
With PTI Inputs)