Bengaluru: Two former Naxalite leaders who had surrendered in Karnataka today rejected the union government's claim that there was a hand of naxalites in the killing of journalist Gauri Lakesh. Speaking to reporters here, the former naxal leaders Sirimane Nagaraj and Noor Sridhar rejected claims by Union Law Minister Ravishankar Prasad that leftist forces could be behind the killing and said 'there was no bad blood between active naxals and Gauri who was trying to bring the leftist extremists to main stream in Karnataka'. Mr Nagaraj said the naxal operatives, though believed strongly naxal ideology, social and political understanding of the left beliefs did not attack civilians and 'not in a single instance' killed a journalist, in the past.
'In Karnataka, the Naxal operatives had taken a stand that there was no need for an armed movement. So any claims that these operatives taking to arms and killing social thinkers and rationalist is unfounded,' he claimed. He did not rule out hand of right-wing activists belonging to Sangh Parivar behind the killing of Ms Lankesh. 'Moaists are not a Mafia. They have their own Manifesto and it is strictly adhered to.
This party sticks to its agenda. The movement is a disciplined and decisions are taken as per popular opinion. 'Those who do not subscribe to the thinking of Naxal movement are given a free way to move out of the movement. This set of individuals will not go against the system and never target individuals or journalists,' Mr Nagaraj claimed. Incidentally, Mr Nagaraj and Ms Sridhar were brought to the mainstream of the society at the initiative taken by Ms Lankesh recently.
The decisions taken by the 'juri' among the Naxalites were explained that decide on their members who take to 'wrong path'. This is followed by a wide consultation and inquiry among large number of hierarchies. Then there will be a strict consultation among the top rung, a number of reviews. 'Only in extreme cases a physical punishment is given and as an ultimate decision is taken to 'eliminate' a member who becomes a police informer or cause deaths among the community, that he or she is given a 'death sentence',' Mr Nagaraj revealed.
He demanded that the Special Investigation Team of Karnataka should concentrate its investigation into the killing of Ms Lankesh on the angle that right-wing activists were responsible for her killing. However, he said the SIT was free to investigate that left wing activists could be involved in the murder. 'What general public want in this case is that the real murderers are brought to the books,'he added. (UNI)