Rama Krishna (RK), a central committee member of the banned ‘Communist Party of India – Maoist,’ died on October 14.
A day later, on Friday, a letter from his banned organization CPI-M confirmed the news of his death and said that he had been suffering from kidney-related issues and died during a dialysis treatment.
It is believed that the Maoist leader was suffering from multiple ailments. He had escaped very narrowly from a security operation in 2016 with possible wounds.
RK, also known as Saketh, was wanted in multiple cases and carried a reward of nearly one crore over his head.
Rama Krishna hailed from the Guntur district in Andhra Pradesh. He joined the ‘People’s War Group’ in 1978.
The 2004 Peace Talks
On June 16, 2004, the newly elected Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy’s government in Andhra Pradesh announced a ceasefire to get the Maoists to the talking table.
The ceasefire gesture was reciprocated by the Maoists in less than a week.
Only months earlier, on October 1, 2003, Mr. Rajasekhara Reddy’s predecessor Chandrababu Naidu survived an assassination attempt in Tirupati when Maoists detonated claymore mines on the Tirumala Ghat Road.
A state secretary of the banned outfit at the time, in 2004, Ramakrishna led an 8-member delegation and participated in the peace talks with the Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy government from October 15 – 18.
Then Home Minister K. Jana Reddy, who led the government delegation, agreed to set up a commission to identify land to distribute to the poor.
Chief Minister Y.S. Rajashekara Reddy responded positively to withdrawing ‘minor cases’ against the Naxalites and releasing political prisoners who served a seven-year jail term.
Not everything was agreed upon, however.
The Maoists were adamant about carrying weapons and refused to concede on their ‘armed struggle.’ It was a part of their ideology, they maintained.
They participated in a Press Conference at the time.
Violence continues unabated
The acts of violence continued post-discussions resulting in both police and civilian casualties.
Top acts of violence included a failed assassination attempt against the SP of Prakasam district, Mahesh Chandra Laddha in April 2005, which resulted in the death of three people.
Months later, Maoists killed Congress MLA Chitlem Narsi Reddy in Narayanpet, Mahboobnagar, on Independence Day.
The August 15 attack using AK-47 rifles also left Mr. Narsi Reddy’s son Venkateshwar Reddy and seven others dead, resulting in the government proscribing the Maoists again.