ON BOARD AIR INDIA ONE - The government is yet to take a firm view on using special forces against the Maoist rebels whom Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has called the “gravest threat” to the country’s internal security.

According to a top official, a major problem the government was facing while dealing with leftwing radicalism was the tacit support the movement was getting from the civil society and NGOs.

As a result, the official said, the views expressed by Home Minister P. Chidambaram, who has indicated the use paramilitary commandoes to flush out Maoists, were being discussed but no decision had been taken as yet.

“The home minister said we ‘may’ employ special forces. Of course, what the home minister said will have a major impact,” the official said on condition of anonymity during an informal chat with journalists accompanying the prime minister on way to the G20 Summit in Pittsburgh.

“But you need to break an egg to have an omelet,” he said. “You also need two hands to clap,” he said, adding thus far none from the movement had come forward to hold talks with the government.

The official’s remarks came against the backdrop of Chidambaram’s comments that the government will not deploy the regular army for surgical strikes on Maoists but could use special forces like paramilitary commandoes to supplement the efforts of the local police.

The comments also came a day after Delhi Police said they had nabbed Kobad Gandhi, a politburo member of the banned Communist Party of India-Maoist, who was educated at the Doon School and trained as an accountant in Britain.