Former BSF Director General criticizes Govt. over talks with Maoists

New Delhi, May 20 (ANI): Former Director General (DG) of Border Security Force Prakash Singh here on Thursday criticized the Government's proposal to hold peace talks with Maoists despite Dantewada incident of Chhattisgarh.

Addressing a seminar on 'Maoist - Naxal Menace: Challenges and Solutions', the former Director General said that Chidambaram's move to hold peace talks was a knee-jerk reaction.

"When Home Minister came with a proposal of peace talks with Maoists after the Dantewada incident, I felt bad about it. Peace talks are okay in normal situations. But if the proposal of peace talks comes a day after a big incident in which Maoists killed so many security personnel, it suggests that the government is feeling the pressure. That's why it is talking about peace talks," said Prakash Singh.

Singh, however, also opined that Maoists attacked Chhattisgarh because the steps taken by the State government posed a threat to their existence.

"The steps taken in Chhattisgarh posed a threat to existence of Maoist groups. That's why they are creating menace in Chhattisgarh," he stated.

Meanwhile, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh, present at the seminar, desribed Maoists as militants and looters.

"Maoists are militants. They are looters. They have occupied mineral-rich area of India. If one observes India's map carefully, they are present in areas which are rich in iron, bauxite, etc. It is a conspiracy. Who are behind these people? It needs to be found out," said Raman Singh.

The rebels carried out at least 1,000 attacks last year, killing more than 600 people, and disrupted movement of coal and bauxite in eastern and central Indian states worth millions of dollars.

Maoist insurgents have spread into rural pockets in 20 of India's 28 states and the movement has upset business prospects worth billions of dollars in mining industries in central and eastern ndia.

Thousands have been killed in the Maoist insurgency that began in the late 1960s.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had termed the Maoist rebels as the country's biggest internal security threat. (ANI)