Maoists hijack train in India

About 400 Communist rebels in India have surrounded a railway station and hijacked a train with about 1,000 passengers on board.The incident comes on the eve of the second round of voting in the country's general election.No-one has been reported hurt in the hijacking in eastern Jharkhand state.Hundreds of Maoist rebels, also known as Naxals, boarded the train and forced the driver to take it to Latehar station.The area is known to be a rebel stronghold.Superintendent Hemant Toppo said the rebels were refusing to let the train leave the station."We are sending security forces to rescue the passengers," said Sarvendu Tathagat, a local government official in Jharkhand.Maoists say they are fighting for the rights of landless labourers and poor farmers.They have stepped up attacks in their strongholds in central and eastern India during the general election.The rebels have asked people in the region to boycott the poll.Maoist rebel violence marred the first stage of India's election last Thursday when five election officials were killed in a landmine blast in Chhattisgarh state.Eleven police were killed across the central and eastern "red belt".Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has described Maoist violence as India's biggest internal security threat. Some 500 civilians and police were killed in insurgent clashes last year.India is holding a staggered general election over April and May in which 714 million people are eligible to vote.Maoists have taken over trains in past years in a show of strength, holding them up for several hours before leaving.Passengers are usually unharmed.