The Andhra Pradesh government has withdrawn all rewards on People's War leaders as part of confidence building measures aimed at finding a solution to the naxal extremism plaguing the state.
Making a statement in the state assembly on "law and order and extremism" on Friday, Home Minister K Jana Reddy also said the police would stop "active pursuit" of armed naxalites.
The government proposed to consult all political parties, intellectuals and civil rights groups, including the Committee of Concerned Citizens, on the modalities for talks with the naxalites, he said.
"The Civil liberties groups and some intellectuals have, on several occasions, expressed doubts on the genuineness of certain encounters. The government, therefore, has decided to adopt the policy of stopping rewards on naxalites who are absconding or killed in encounters with police," he said.
Thirty years of armed resistance has not yielded any result for the naxalites nor has it shaken the people's faith in democracy, the home minister said. "Our (Congress) government believes that the problem should be viewed from a larger socio-economic perspective and tackled holistically. It is heartening to note that the extremist groups have expressed willingness for talks and we take it as opportunity to explore for lasting solutions to reduce violence."
The government will constitute a conciliation committee with eminent persons, which would identify and address the problems of the people espoused by the extremist groups.
"The conciliation committee will strive to achieve a solution at the earliest," he said without spelling out a timeframe for the initiating and completing the dialogue. During this period, the police will not actively pursue the armed squads into the jungles to avoid loss of human life. But the police will continue to visit villages in a bid to instil a sense of security and confidence among the villagers, he said.
Spelling out certain conditions, the minister said the government expected the armed extremist groups to refrain from intimidation, extortion or other forms of violence.
"It is the government's responsibility to ensure that the people in general live in peace and free from fear. The government will also instruct the law and order agencies to adopt a positive approach towards innocent villagers or hapless sympathizers. We will adopt a firm and humane approach to solve the problem," he said.
He also said that many rural youth were attracted to underground life due to the "unfounded and exaggerated fear" from security forces. "We appeal to all such persons to come back to the mainstream. The government will take all steps for proper counselling and rehabilitation," he said.
Various developmental agencies of the government will be involved in the rehabilitation of such persons, and the process would be closely monitored, he added.
Before the Congress government assumed office in mid-May, as many as 68 people, including 7 policemen, were killed in naxalite violence from January 1 onwards. Last year, the toll was 129, including 13 policemen.
"The problem of extremist violence is a longstanding one. Several eminent leaders, police personnel and civilians have lost their lives, besides the armed resistance groups who are none other than our own citizens," he added.
The government had announced cash rewards ranging between Rs 20,000 to Rs 12 lakh on the heads of armed naxalites. The amounts varied with the rank of the PW functionaries. The rewards were paid to policemen who killed the wanted naxals in encounters. If the naxals surrendered, the reward amount on them was paid to them for their rehabilitation.