'The Maoists are adopting a hit-and-run policy and they will continue to do so,' he said, adding the Left Front is concerned about the exodus of its party cadres from the area due to the terror perpetrated by the Leftwing extremist group.

Lalgarh, about 200 km west of Kolkata, has been on the boil since November when a landmine exploded on the route of the convoy of Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and then central ministers Ram Vilas Paswan and Jitin Prasada.

Alleging police atrocities after the blast, the Maoists along with the People's Committee against Police Atrocity (PCAPA) launched an agitation and made the area a virtual 'free zone' by torching police camps and offices of the ruling communist party and driving out the civil administration.

Maoists are active in the state's three western districts of West Midnapore, Bankura and Purulia.