New Delhi - Hours after threatening to kill a police officer in India's eastern state of West Bengal, Maoist rebels released him Thursday, news reports said. Atindranath Dutta, officer-in-charge of Sankrail police station in West Midnapore district, was taken hostage by the rebels on Tuesday in an attack in which they shot dead two policemen.
The officer was released in front of a lawyer and then presented to media persons in a forested area, regional Bengali news channel Star Ananda reported.
Dutta was released after the government met the demand of the Maoists and released on bail 14 tribal women arrested in Lalgarh area of West Bengal earlier in 2009 for alleged connections to the Maoists, the report said.
They are among 23 women who Maoist leader Koteshwar Rao, alias Kishenji, wanted freed as, according to his telephone calls to media organizations, they were old and sickly.
The West Bengal government on Wednesday said it was ready for negotiations for Dutta's release. "If the Maoists make a specific proposal, the state government is willing to talk to them," West Bengal's top bureaucrat AM Chakraborty had said.
However, as negotiations were on, largely in the form of statements to the electronic media by both sides, Kishenji said Thursday morning that the Maoists could not take responsibility for Dutta's safety if the security forces continued their offensive.
The forces opened fire Thursday on rebels who were expected to produce Dutta before the media in Lakhanpur village of West Midnapore, NDTV news channel reported.
The forces had followed journalists to the village, cordoned it off and began firing, Kishenji said.
However, the Maoist leader later announced Dutta would be released as the tribal women had been freed.
Dutta was being escorted back through the forests by accompanying media representatives, Star Ananda reported quoting state officials.
Earlier in October, the rebels had abducted and beheaded another police official, Francis Enduwar, in neighbouring Jharkhand state.
Among the reported demands of the Maoists on both occasions was the release of Maoist leaders including Chhatradhar Mahato, leader of a group against police atrocities which is closely linked to the rebels and who led agitation against the government in West Bengal's Lalgarh area.
Maoist rebels are active in 20 of India's 28 states and claim their armed rebellion is aimed at securing the rights of tribal people and rural poor.
They usually target security personnel and government installations.
At least 2,671 people - including civilians, security personnel and rebels - have been killed in incidents related to Maoist violence in India since 2006, according to Home Ministry data.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh recently said left-wing extremism posed the greatest internal security threat for India.
The government is preparing for a major offensive against Maoist rebels. Media reports said it was expected to be launched within days of completion of local elections in three states for which results were announced Thursday.
West Bengal police chief Bhupinder Singh said the state's forces would be joining the coordinated operations against the Maoist rebels.
