From correspondents in Madhya Pradesh, India, 12:01 AM IST

A Maoist organisation, in a letter to Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, threatened to kill him and his wife if services of teachers in 'panchayats' (village councils) are not merged with the education department. Police, however, suspect the authenticity of the letter.

'A letter threatening to kill Chouhan and his wife Sadhna Singh was received at the chief minister's office Tuesday evening and immediately sent to police headquarters for registration of case and further investigations,' said Shamla Hills police station in-charge Kamal Jain.

The letter, Jain said, has been written in the name of Pramukh Naxali Sangathan Balaghat and threatened that both Chouhan and his wife would be shot dead if their demand was not met with soon, police said.

'Though it appears to be a mischief, we are not taking any chances,' Inspector General (Law and Order) A.K. Soni told IANS.

(Staff Writer, © IANS)