NAXAL/ MAOISTS- 2009 - Indian Social Institute

operations. He underscored the need for looking at the causes of alienation of the people, particularly thetribals. there were certain deficiencies in tribal areas and they need to be rectified. Replying to a question,he said there was no outside support to the Naxalite groups. “If they come to talk to us, we are ready withany group, even if they are in Jammu & Kashmir,” he added. “They (Naxals) are banned organisationsand are covered under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. We are not in favour of using the armedforces against the Naxalites,” he noted. He added that no group or individual can take law in their hands.Singh's statement comes against the backdrop of home minister P Chidambaram's assertion that Naxalviolence was simply not acceptable and the security forces will engage the Maoists till they abjureviolence. On the ongoing crisis in Pakistan, Singh said the situation in the country was not what it shouldbe. “Pakistan government should realise the cost of patronising terror,” he said. The Prime Minister addedthat Pakistan has admitted that the Mumbai conspiracy was hatched there. “I've been told seven accusedfor 26/11 have been chargesheeted,” he said. (Financial Express 12/10/09)Maoists losing grip on Lalgarh residents: intelligence report (12)Kolkata, October 12, 2009: Maoists have started losing their sway over the people of Lalgarh and itssurrounding areas in the wake of a sustained operation by the joint forces and the arrest of tribal leadersChhatradhar Mahato and Sukhshanti Baske. According to intelligence reports, the people whoseconfidence the Maoists had gained by espousing their cause, have stopped supplying food and medicineto the extremists, indicating an end to the bonhomie. The reports said that a rift had emerged betweenmembers and supporters of the People's Committee against Police Atrocities (PCPA) following the jointforces operation and the arrest of the two tribal leaders. The frontline leaders of the PCPA areincreasingly finding it difficult to carry forward their movement due to intensified police operations, thereports said. Also the Maoists have few sophisticated arms left in their possession and whatever armsthey have at present are primitive, the reports say. Intelligence sources said that after the report reachedthe state police, Director General of Police Bhupinder Singh along with other top officials held a meetingon Saturday to decide the future course of action. Underground Maoist leader Kishenji, however,rubbished the reports, saying they were without basis. "It is true we are at present having lessprogrammes, but that is because of the festive season." Speaking from an undisclosed location, theMaoist leader said they were concentrating more on solving problems of the local people than fighting thejoint forces. Meanwhile, the police and the administration are using the "declining popularity" of theextremists to their advantage by trying to woo the people through an extensive public relations exercise.West Midnapore superintendent of police, Monoj Verma, told PTI over phone that recently they had helda football tournament in Ramgarh where 32 teams from 26 villages participated. At the end of thetournament on Sunday they arranged a picnic where not only the participants but also the locals tookpart. "Sunday was the final of the football tournament and nearly 3000 people had their lunch in the picnicthat we arranged," Verma said. He said a similar soccer tournament was held at neighbouringKantapahari which was a "huge success". (Hindustan Times 13/10/09)Naxal violence continues (12)Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh said in Mumbai that military would not be used against the Naxalites.At the same time the Naxalites began their two-day 'bandh' in Bihar and Jharkhand, leading to largescaledestruction of property. The state governments could hardly do much to contain the Naxal menace.Naxals blasted bridges and railway tracks and burnt the trucks in both the states. They also stoppedtraffic and opened fire and used explosives at several places. The bandh call comes when assembly pollsare being held in three states from tomorrow. Though, the PM called Naxalism as the biggest threat tointernal security, but he also said that the Army and the Air Force would not be used against them, statepolice and paramilitary forces could overcome this menace. He did not give terrorist tag to the naxals butthey come under `banned illegal organisations'. Dr Manmohan Singh said that it has become necessaryto know the root cause why people, especially in remote tribal areas, are siding with the Naxalites. TheNaxals have killed around 250 police personnel in the last 10 months of this year and their network hasspread up to 180 districts of 10 states. Former Police commissioner of Delhi Arun Bhagat says thatgovernment only took action against the naxals when they committed any big incident. The step of thegovernment has been in reactive manner. The government never took initiative itself. It is a big loophole.In context to the latest attacks by the Naxals, the Central government is planning for a decisive action toroot out the menace. (Central Chronicle 14/10/09)