'BJP put up Maoist posters in Jhargram, some TV channels creating atmosphere of fear'

kolkata: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee alleged that the BJP has deliberately put up Maoist posters in an attempt to create an atmosphere of fear. She maintained that she will soon visit Jhargram.

"The BJP has put up three 'Maoist posters' in Jhargram and a few television channels are doing hullabaloo creating an atmosphere of fear. The district administration must convince the locals that the posters are fake and tell them the reality," Banerjee said at the administrative review meeting at Nabanna on Wednesday.

When asked by Banerjee about the ground reality in Jhargram, District Magistrate Jayashi Das Gupta said that no Maoist activity was found during a preliminary investigation.

"There is no lawlessness due to Maoists anywhere in Jhargram district. We have not found any evidence of Maoist activities here," Das Gupta added.

Banerjee, however, claimed that she had specific inputs of at least five Maoists entering the Jhargram district through the Jharkhand border in Belpahari. "Have you sealed the inter-state boundary in Belpahari? There is a gap between your information and mine," she asked Das Gupta.

Director-General of Police Manoj Malaviya said that among the five red rebels, three have been nabbed and a manhunt has been launched to apprehend the remaining two. "In case, Maoists have entered the district from Jharkhand, take action against them," Banerjee said.

She added that after coming to power in the state in 2011, her government has employed at least 10,000 surrendered Maoists as home guards. "I have information that those surrendered Maoists who are yet to get employment are bringing in Maoists from outside the state. Get their details and send those to the DGP so that employment can be provided. I don't want any negligence on the matter," Banerjee told DM Das Gupta.