Puskar Gautam appears to be engaged in a bit of wishful thinking (Chinks in the Maoist armour, #89) about the state of desperation among the Maoists. There may, as he says, be a split in the Maoist leadership, but there are no signs that this is affecting their activities.

The recent attacks in Lamahi and Satbaria show they still pack a powerful punch, and the security forces are only in a reactive mode. They now have weapons as sophisticated as the security forces. In the light of Maoist military strength and their recent attacks on infrastructure, the government should initiate talks with the Maoist immediately without any conditions. In my view, peace talks are a must for the state to save the constitution in the short term and the nation in the long term.

Prakash Kafle
Surkhet