The union home minister P Chidambaram on Tuesday strongly condemned the beheading of a police officer in Jharkhand by Naxalites and said government would deal firmly with the menace.
Chidambaram who was here to address a Congress election rally told reporters that the Naxalite movement was active in states like Maharashtra, Andhra, Bihar and the centre was carefully watching the situation in coordination with the respective state governments.
Describing the incident as a "cold blooded murder", the Home Minister said the human rights activists should also condemn such violence.
He said two members of Naxalite politburo had been nabbed over the last few months as part of the combing operations.
Chidambaram who condoled the death of the officer said the family of the deceased would be fully taken care of.