This statement should be made by the Prime Minister because two ministers of his Cabinet, the Home Minister and the Railway Minister, are making “contradictory speeches”, Selim said.

“The Railway Minister and the TMC chief are the same person, she cannot ignore her position in the Cabinet,” he said. “The Home Minister had said that Azad was killed in an encounter. The Railway Minister might have some different information and view over the incident. Why did she not express her view in the Cabinet or the Parliament in the past one-and-a-half months? The PM should come out with the view of the government because there are differences between two of his Cabinet ministers.”

“We are not against talks, negotiation can take place once the insurgent groups abjure violence,” he further said. But Banerjee cannot be the mediator as she has been giving support to Maoists. “A mediator should be a neutral person, which she is not,” Selim added.

Reacting to Mamata Banerjee’s claim that she had made her Lalgarh speech as Trinamool Congress chief, CPM also asked if she was right in deploying Railways Protection Force (RPF) jawans at her August 9 rally.

The three months’ ‘ceasefire’ offer by Kishenji was aimed at buying time, the party maintained.

“And Mamata Banerjee is trying to supply them oxygen,” said Selim.