The Maoists have said that they did not derail the Gyaneshwari Express and have demanded an impartial probe into the incident.
"When we commit a mistake, we frankly admit it, apologise to the people and assure them that we would not repeat such a mistake. The party leadership is not aware of any involvement of the cadre, but if it is found that anyone close to our party has indeed carried out the sabotage of the railways, then we will take stringent action against them," Communist Party of India-Maoist spokesperson Azad said in a statement dated June 1.
Significantly, he also said the party would not attack the railways from now.
'We assure the people of our country that there will not be any attacks on trains in the future and we will instruct our party cadre to abstain from such acts as they can cause loss of ordinary lives," the statement said.
In the past, the Maoists have derailed several goods trains and held up passenger and express trains, mostly in Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal.
On May 28, the Mumbai-bound Jnaneshwari Express derailed and rammed an oncoming goods train, killing more than 100. The centre, the West Bengal government and Union Railways Minister Mamata Banerjee had alleged Maoist involvement.
Calling the Communist Party of India-Marxist as social fascists, Azad said the West Bengal government was using the incident to tarnish the image of the Maoists.
"Strangely, the incident is being used by the West Bengal government, the police and some ruling class parties like the Hindu fascist Bharatiya Janata Party and the social fascist Communist Party of India-Marxist to tarnish our image and gain legitimacy to the counter-revolutionary war unleashed by the Indian state against the poorest sections of the Indian society led by the Maoists,' he said.
Pointing a finger at the CPI-M, he said: 'With an eye on the elections, and unnerved by their fast eroding social base, the social fascists think they can gain sympathy through such dirty tricks. The reactionary ruling class parties have degenerated to such a low level that they will go to any extent to be in power."
He also blamed the media.
'While the media ran headlines attributing the cause of the sabotage to the Maoists, they report in their columns that the inquiry is on and that the Maoist involvement is suspected. How can the media deliver the judgment before any evidence is found or enquiry conducted?" he said, condemning the "kangaroo trial" by the media.
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