CM meets PM on PWG violence
Moots unified police force

NEW DELHI, Dec 18 (PTI) — Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijay Singh today met Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee and suggested setting up a unified police force to deal with the Naxalite menace in the state and neighbouring areas.

During his 30-minute meeting, Mr Digvijay Singh said the Naxalite problem had assumed alarming proportions in a number of contiguous states. Hence a unified police force would go a long way in dealing with it.

He requested the Prime Minister to take up the matter with the Home Ministry and suggested that police personnel in the special force be given additional training to counter extremist violence.

The suggestion comes in the wake of state’s Transport Minister Likhiram Kawre’s gruesome killing in Balaghat recently by suspected Naxalites.

A report from Jagdalpur in Madhya Pradesh said Naxalites killed a youth at Badrangi village in Bastar district on Thursday.

The police said at least 10 Naxalites, including two women, searched for the 26-year-old Ravi and beat him to death.

Pamphlets found near the body stated that the Naxalites would take similar action against those who helped the police.

The victim had reportedly participated in a “mass awakening” programme organised by the police recently.

Meanwhile, a Deputy Commander of the PWG today surrendered at Chittoor before the Superintendent of Police Tushar Aditya Tripathy.

K. Venkatramana, alias Suryam (27), carrying a reward of Rs 25,000 on his head, was involved in several offences, including murder, the police said.

Suryam was also member of the Radical Students Union of Rayachoti in Karnataka.

HYDERABAD: The house of a TDP MP was partially damaged in an explosion triggered by activists of the PWG in Nizamabad district of Andhra Pradesh, the police said today.

The Madhya Pradesh police has announced a cash reward of Rs 25,000 for the person giving any clue to or information on the murder of State Transport Minister Likhiram Kawre

No one was in the house of G.Ganga Reddy, the Nizamabad MP, when the blast occurred late last night at Kespally village, the police said.

Mr Reddy was residing in Nizamabad, district headquarters.