NAXAL/ MAOISTS- 2009 - Indian Social Institute

have begun to expect a positive outcome now. One of the petitioners against Salwa Judum campaign inSupreme Court Nandini Sunder said that the tribals who have been taken to the relief camps or fled toAndhra Pradesh can return. “Villagers haven’t been able to cultivate their fields and live in terribleinsecurity, their children suffer from severe malnutrition”, she said. (Hindustan Times 20/2/09)Maoists attack forest beat house (12)BERHAMPUR: A group of alleged Maoists and their supporters on Wednesday night attacked a beathouse of forest department at Barda of Phulbani forest division in Kandhamal district. They ransacked theforest beat house and escaped with the guns and cash kept there. It is suspected that the miscreantstook away two guns and pistol, which were with the forest officials posted at the spot. They also lootedaround Rs. 1 lakh cash kept in the office for salary and daily wage payments. But no forest official wasinjured in the attack. According to forest officials, the forest beat house is located in an extreme remotearea of Karada forest range. The news of the attack reached the police and forest department onThursday morning due to lack of communication in the area. By that time the miscreants had escapedfrom the spot. A team of police and forest official, including the Phulbani Divisional Forest Officer (DFO)N.C.Mohanty have rushed to the spot. According to sources a group of around 40 persons, whichincluded some armed men reached this remote forest beat house on Wednesday night. Theyoverpowered the two foresters and two forest guards present at the beat house. They seemed to havethe information that the forest officials had reached there with cash drawn from the head office. Theyransacked the beat house, looted the guns and cash before escaping into the jungle. They also pasted ahand written poster on the wall of the beat house hailing CPI-Maoist party. The poster threatened that anyperson, who would inform the police about the incident would be killed. It may be noted that on Mondaynaxals had blasted a landmine injuring 13 near Adaba in Gajapati district. The spot was near border ofKandhamal district. Since long naxals are claiming their presence in Kandhamal district. (The Hindu20/2/09)Caught in the Naxal-government crossfire (12)Saturday, February 21, 2009, (Gadchiroli (Maharashtra)) A change of mood is evident in Gadchirolidistrict, once the heart of the Naxal movement in Maharashtra. Villagers who at one time sent their sonsinto the Naxal movement are witnessing a change of heart. But the movement clearly does not seem tobe weakening. It's acquiring a wider base going by the Naxal encounter in which 15 policemen were killedearlier in February. So where does Naxalism continue to derive its strength from? "The Naxals have guns.So do the police. The Naxals come with guns and frighten us. So do the police. What have we done? Welook after the jungles, we depend on it for our livelihood and we live in it," said Kanubai Shimpi, aresident. The sentiment is not uncommon in Naxal terrains. A journalist travelling to these parts oftenhears how villagers are caught in the crossfire. The situation is same in the red corridor of Gadchiroli,where for generations, families have sent their sons into the Naxal movement. Since the Naxal encounterin February, eight villagers have been rounded up and the entire settlement is under watch. "This is notour fault. It's the fault of the Naxals. We had nothing to do with this encounter. If we listen to the Naxalswe lose out. We don't listen to them anymore. They punish us by not letting us cut bamboo from theforests," said Bainabai Husendi, resident, Markegaon village. A reaction which until recently would havebeen unthinkable of from villages like Markegaon, which are traditional Naxal strongholds. Inneighbouring Mardya too, simmering anger against Naxal impositions. "They don't let the roads get built.They don't let us earn a living. They prevent EGS Schemes from being set up. Because of them the roadin this village is still not built. They have been around 25-30 years, but we have not got any benefits out oftheir movement," said Bhaskar Kadem, Mardya resident. "Earlier they would come with guns and insistwe give them food and shelter. We would agree out of fear. Now the village has decided that we will diebut will not support them. They threatened us when we took this stand. But when they came to the villageour women stood in front and said kill us but we won't let you harm our men. After some time theystopped coming," said Shivaji Norute, resident, Mardya village. In this opposition by villagers, officers likeRajesh Pradhan, Superintendent of Police at Gadchiroli, have found a foothold. "In the last four to fiveyears, we have started many innovative concepts like 'Gaonbandi' and 'Jan Jaagran' where police campin villages for 10 days with different government departments, and offer them schemes and certificates forjobs. Surrender policy had paid off, more than 140 had surrendered. This is not due to just administration.People have also realised that the talk which has been going on for 25 years has not happened on theground, the Janta Sarkar, the Utopian ideologue, not happening," said Rajesh Pradhan. Many Naxals like

Suresh Harami have also left the movement. "They give speeches on people's rights, but don't practice it.Earlier if villagers were suspected of supporting the police, they would be given a warning and then triedin a people's court. Now they just enter a village and kill them," said Suresh. Then how has Naxalism notshown any signs of weakening, spreading its base, taking on the might of the state? "Today no one cansay openly they are associated with the movement," said Susan Abraham, Human Rights lawyer. SusanAbharam spent nine years in the region as a labour activist. Her husband, now in jail, was accused ofbeing a Naxal. She says tribals and villagers continue to support the movement even if it is only becausethese regions are so underdeveloped. "Why is it that you don't hear of starvation deaths in Gadchiroli, butyou do from neighbouring Melghat. It may not address many issues but there is an emphasis on primaryhealth, primary education and to oppose established levels of exploitation," said Susan. "If development iscoming in any form to this region, it's coming in the form of roads because it easier for security forces tomove. But if there is development in terms of health and education, it's because of what the Naxals havebeen doing," said Bernard D'Mello, deputy editor, Economic & Political Weekly. Whether the Naxals havedone enough on the ground in terms of health and education is debatable, but the movement seems tohave brought visibility. "When I was a small girl there was no school and no hospital in my village. Whensomeone fell sick they got no treatment. Now that has changed. They made the government aware thatvillages like ours exist," said Lakshmi, a surrendered Naxal. When we visited Gadchiroli the villagers areangry that policemen have been killed on their land. Just a few weeks later, many of them took to thestreets, angry because Tribal Welfare Minister Vijay Wadettivar threw a file at a villager who was askingfor her dues. It's in this grey area, this sense that neither the government nor the Naxals willunconditionally support them; that Naxalism in former strongholds like Gadchiroli manages to find someshadow of support. (NDTV 22/2/09)Maoists cause mayhem in Malkangiri (12)BERHAMPUR: Armed Maoists caused mayhem for several hours on Sunday night at Govindpalli underMathili police station in naxal infested Malkangiri district of the State. They killed a contractor PrasannaKumar Swain, blasted the control room of the BSNL mobile communication tower, and ransacked thepolice outpost and forest range office at Govindpalli during their rule of anarchy at the village for fewhours. Although Mathili police station was only seven kilometers away and personnel of the India ReserveBattalion (IRB) were present there, they could not reach in time to counter the naxals. Before escapingfrom Govindpalli, the Maoists also blocked the Malkangiri-Jeypore road at several places near Govindpalliby felling trees to prevent police force reaching the spot. The traffic on the road was hampered for severalhours till the road blocks were cleared by police on Monday morning. According to the MalkangiriSuperintendent of Police (SP), Satyabrata Bhoi a group of armed naxals reached the Govindpalli villageat around 10 p.m. and targeted the construction contractor Mr. Swain. He was dragged out of his houseand hacked to death by sharp weapons on the village road. They also ransacked the house of thecontractor and torched and damaged around 10 vehicles at the village, which included trucks and tippersof Mr. Swain. The Maoists had made the attack on the Govindpur village in a planned manner. While agroup was busy at the house of the contractors, other groups of Maoists reached the police outpost,forest range office and the BSNL communication tower. A sub-inspector and four constables were thereat the Govindpalli police outpost. But they had no arms with them. So, they had to surrender and thenaxals ransacked and tried to torch the police outpost. They did not injure the policemen. Similarly theforest range office was also ransacked and its building was set on fire. The Maoists set fire to the controlroom of the BSNL communication tower. They also did not forget to damage a power distribution unit,which was under construction at the village. The naxals also pasted posters in the Govindpalli villagebefore escaping. The posters had slogans against the State government and Chief Minister, NaveenPatnaik. Following the incident, extra police force was deployed in the area and a massive combingoperation launched to nab the culprits. Through this recent attack naxals again proved that they wereopposed development of road and telephone network in the area. Sudhakar Patnaik, a close friend ofdeceased contractor, Mr. Swain said by killing him the naxals have affected the livelihood of around 700tribals who were employed by him. Through this attack naxals want to create panic among contractors sothat no construction works including those of roads are taken up in any area. (The Hindu 24/2/09)Nabbed Maoists admit to planning Swami’s killing, Nayagarh attack (12)Sundargarh: Two arrested Maoist leaders on Monday admitted they were involved in the killing of SwamiLaxmanananda Saraswati and the Nayagarh mayhem at a Press conference in Rourkela. The duo were

held by the Brahmanitarang police on Thursday. They were identified as Ashutosh Soren alias Motilal ofJharkhand and Atul alias Rajeev of Bihar. They are a prized catch after the arrest of top woman MaoistSobha. They were interrogated by police officials of Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh andAndhra Pradesh. They made some startling revelations that they were involved in a number of Maoistrelatedactivities in these States. IG Operations of Orissa Sudhansu Shekhar Sarangi has also arrivedhere for further interrogation. Rs 40,000 in cash, arms and ammunition were recovered from them, saidsources. It has been ascertained that Ashutosh was the decision maker of the assassination of SwamiLanmanananda Saraswati and the Nayagarh mayhem. He was a Central Committee member of CPI(Maoists) and also a close associate of Sabyasachi Panda alias Sunil. They had come to the State tocollect extortion money from industrialists and businessmen. However, their luck ran out this time as thedriver of the private vehicle smelled something fishy and drove them straightaway to the police stationwhere they were overpowered. Speaking to mediapersons Ashutosh said Laxmanananda was on their hitlist and the local cadre of PLGA of Kandhamal district were involved in the murder. Earlier, the cops weretightlipped about their arrests. Even Rourkela Superintendent of Police Santosh Bala had also denied ofhaving any knowledge of the matter, the day the Bhaluata railway station was blasted on the Orissa-Sundargarh border. As the police continued to maintain a stoic silence after the arrests, Ashutosh calledup mediapersons in Rourkela and identified himself as a reporter of a Hindi paper and informed that thetwo were being held by the police. The modus operandi was to force the police to make their arrestspublic and forward them to court. So that they could be sent to judicial custody. The same modusoperandi was employed after the arrest of Sobha. Pioneer 3/3/09)Tribal leader shot dead in Jharkhand (12)Jamshedpur: A local tribal leader was killed by suspected Maoists in Jadugora tola of Jharkhand’s EastSinghbhum district on Wednesday, a senior police officer said. This comes about two months after theultras gunned down a member of a resistance group in the area. Superintendent of Police Navin KumarSingh said Kailash Chandra Hembram, the Secretary of Majhi-Paragana Mahal, was gunned down by twounidentified men at Jadugora Tola, a few kilometers away from Dumaria. Hembram, who died on thespot, was on his way to a fair from his native Patnipal village. (The Hindu 5/3/09)Four tribals killed by Maoists in Chhattisgarh (12)Raipur (IANS): The police on Monday recovered the bodies of four tribals allegedly kidnapped by Maoistsin Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district, officials said. "The rebels had abducted four men, all aged around 30,late Sunday from Tarlaguda village. Their bodies were recovered on Monday from a hilly area,"Superintendent of Police Ankit Garg told IANS over the telephone. The killing came on the day thenotification for Lok Sabha polls were issued. Maoists have announced a boycott of the general electionsin the state. The bodies were recovered some 500 km from here. The police said the men were killedbecause the Maoists suspected they were police spies.(The Hindu 23/3/09)Maoists get ready for battle ahead (12)JHARGRAM/KOLKATA: The road from Jhargram station leads to an undulating meadow at Simlipal,surrounded by hillocks at a distance with a lush-green cover. Beyond that point, the winding village roadleads to the far-flung hamlets where Maoists have a strong presence. A 60-member strong MaoistGuerrilla Army has already taken position atop Kanaisar Hill bordering Jharkhand and West Bengal.Villagers of Loboni, Pachapani and Jamjurki are keeping their fingers crossed. They fear a bloody battlein this area as soon as the central forces start flush-out operations. "The Kanaisar Hill acts as awatchtower. One can figure out the police movement at least 10 km from Simlipal. Those who havegathered in the hills will retaliate immediately," a villager from Pachapani said. The message has reachedBelpahari police station. Scared of the Maoist retaliation, some of the serving sub-inspectors havemanaged to get transferred to Kotwali and other "safe" places. Others are waiting with bated breath forthe central forces to take the lead. Chhatradhar Mahato, spokesperson of the Maoist-led People'sCommittee against Police Atrocities, sounded defiant. "How is it that the state home secretary talks ofpolice action when the district magistrate is holding talks with our representatives? If police have theirway, we will resist the move come what may," he said. Mahato also denied charges brought against themthe day they mobbed the team of central forces. "Villagers gheraoed them, but nobody opened fire asclaimed by the administration," he said. Home secretary Ardhendu Sen was categorical about the police

action. "We have to send polling parties to these areas. How will they reach there without policepresence?" he said. Prodded by seniors, Mahato on Wednesday came to Kolkata to meet ailing writerMahasweta Devi, who could not make it to their meeting at Pirkata some days ago. "Mahasweta Devi hasbeen fighting for the cause of Kherias, Sabars and Adivasis since long. I have briefed her about thesituation in Lalgarh," he said. Back in Jangalmahal, the situation remains tense. Police spread over in thecamps are not in a position to venture out into the villages. "We don't want political parties to come to ourvillage. Where were they all these months?" said a youth from Pachapani. SP Manoj Verma seemedunperturbed. "The directive has come from the EC. Police could not enter the villages for the last threemonths. A total of 13 people have been killed in the past four months. We could not investigate theassault on the CM's convoy. This cannot go on," he said. (Times of India 26/3/09)Maoists demolish police outpost (12)MALKANGIRI: Armed Maoists demolished a police outpost in Podia block, 75 km from here, using abulldozer. The outpost was set up only recently. More than 20 armed Maoists arrived at Podia underKalimela police limits at about 10 pm on Tuesday, woke up the bulldozer operator at a construction siteand forced him to use it to bring down the outpost. Though the demolition was going on for more than anhour, the administration had no information about it. Later, the Maoists set the BSNL control room on fire.SP Satyabrata Bhoi confirmed the incidents. In another incident, about 3,000 Maoists and theirsupporters, under the banner of Chasi Mulia Sangha, assembled at Hatpada in Kalimela highlighting theirsix-point charter of demands. The cadres and their supporters reached Kalimela and went to the blockraising pro-Maoist and antigovernment slogans. The ultras, who terrorised the locals, left after putting upposters asking people to boycott the ensuing elections and warned that those campaigning and takingpart in the polls would be punished. The Government has failed to ensure development of the tribalpockets in the district, they alleged. They demanded extension of the canal from Bhejangwada toManamkonda, electrification of tribal villages and granting ST status to Kondareddy community. Thecadres later handed over the charter of demands to the Kalimela BDO. (Express Buzz 26/3/09)Police heat on Maoists in Lalgarh (12)KOLKATA: The state government is planning a police crackdown in Lalgarh to flush out Maoists beforethe elections. But learning from the mistakes in Nandigram, the police offensive will "confront Maoistswithout endangering local people". This was made clear by state home secretary Ardhendu Sen onTuesday at Writers Buildings. "The situation there is not conducive to holding the elections," Sen said,almost announcing a police encounter in the troubled Lalgarh area of West Midnapore, where local tribalshad launched an offensive allegedly with the support of Maoists. The state government has told theElection Commission about the impending trouble. "It would impossible to hold elections in Lalgarh in thecurrent situation. We can't have isolated forces in the area. Flushing out of Maoists is essential forpeaceful polls," Sen said. He added that preparations were on to initiate police action before theelections. "We can't reveal the tactical decisions," he said, not ruling out confrontation with commonpeople. "It's a complex problem. We've got to be careful." Hours before these announcements, WestMidnapore district magistrate N S Nigam met Lalgarh tribal leader Chhatradhar Mahato to try andconvince him to let policemen enter the area ahead of the elections. Mahato, the convener of People'sCommittee Against Police Atrocities, has asked for time to discuss the DM's proposal with othercommittee leaders before coming to a decision. The meeting focused on the need to send police force toLalgarh, where PCPA activists are continuing their boycott of policemen. On Saturday, police weregheraoed when they tried to enter the area. Mahato said, "I can't take a decision of my own. We have acommittee comprising 108 members. All of them have to discuss the matter before a decision is reached."The DM explained to him the need to send police forces to the area once the poll process starts. (Timesof India 27/3/09)Ten Maoist sympathisers arrested (12)GUNTUR: Police unearthed some assembled parts of .303 rifles, magazines and detonators from thehouse of a suspected Maoist sympathiser in Mangalagiri rural mandal limits and arrested nine suspectsunder various sections of the Arms Act, Andhra Pradesh Public Security Act and 108 Cr.P.C. The Gunturpolice on Monday recovered 186 bombs from two different places in Kunkalakunta village in Nakarekalluvillage and arrested three persons belonging to the Praja Rajyam Party. The three were identified asKommuri Srinivas, Ramisetty Chowdhaiah and Tandra Vengala Rao. Amid speculations that the arrests

might had a political angle, Superintendent of Police Mahesh Chandra Laddha confirmed at the pressconference that there was strong evidence to prove that the suspects had been actively participating inthe Maoist activities for many years. According to the police, the Mangalagiri Sub-Inspector (Rural)recently intercepted one Kolakaluri Lakshmana Rao (23) at Nidamarru Road based on his suspiciousmovements. On further interrogation, the suspect revealed that there were some assembled parts ofthree rifles hidden in a pit at his house. The police recovered two butts of .303 rifles, bolts, twomagazines, 102 live rounds and four detonators from his house. He also admitted that the assembledparts had been given by the president of Kerosene Dealer’s Association president and a member ofPatriotic Democratic Movement, Konda Reddy and his associate Koteswara Rao. The police could gatherinformation about the involvement of Daksharaju Hemanth Kumar, Busireddy Lakshmi Narsa Reddy,Busireddy Mallikarjuna Reddy and Sravan Kumar, who had been allegedly involved in Maoist activities inthe Mangalagiri and Tadepalli areas. The police arrested all of them and recovered Maoist literature. “Thearrests point to the presence of more Maoist sympathisers in the region and we will soon arrest theremaining persons,” the SP said. Officer on Special Duty M. Ravi Prakash and other police officers werepresent. (The Hindu 31/3/09)Naxalites blast school building (12)Jamui: Armed activists of proscribed CPI (Maoist) blasted a state-run school at Chormara village inBihar’s Jamui district in the wee hours on Tuesday, police said. Heavily-armed ultras numbering around50 surrounded the Choramara Madhya Vidayalaya under Bhimbandh forest range and detonated severaldynamites to blow up the building, the police said. No casualties were reported in the attack, they said.Raids were being carried out at different places to apprehend the naxalites. (The Hindu 1/4/09)Maoists blow up community hall in Nawadih (12)CPI(Maoist) activists blew up a Bahudesiya Sudaik Bhawan near Pank village in Nawadih block in Bermoon Tuesday morning. The rebels also manhandled some of the villagers. They raised anti-Governmentslogans while attacking the Bhawan, sources said. According to ASP G Kranti Kumar, around 30 to 50activists reached the Pank village crossing a local river and starting throwing dynamites at newlyconstructed Bhawan. Incidentally, none of the villagers were living in the Bhawan, as the impact of theblast was quite severe. The CPI(Maoist) cadres went inside the Bhawan, which was constructed last yearat a cost of Rs 25 lakh. Confirming the incident, Kumar said that it was a minor incident as no casualtyhad taken place. No arrest has been made so far in this connection. An operation is on to find outwhether the group is still hiding in that zone, ASP further added. However, sources said that group hasescaped from the village after destroying the Government property. (Pioneer 1/4/09)Maoists blow up BJP leader’s house (12)Chatra: The Maoists have blown up three structures, including the house of a local BJP leader, inChatra’s Moktama village, the police said here on Thursday. About 50 armed Maoists reached the villagelate last night, asked family members of the BJP leader Mahendra Yadav to vacate the house and blew itup with dynamites, Assistant Superintendent of Police Jatin Narwal said. Mr. Yadav was not present inthe house during the attack. The group latter destroyed the village panchayat hall and an anganwadicentre with explosives, Mr. Narwal said. There was no loss of life in any of the incidents. A Maoist notepasted on the walls in the village claimed responsibility of the explosions. (The Hindu 3/4/09)Naxals bare their fangs in Malkangiri and Kandhamal (12)BERHAMPUR: Maoists continued with their violent acts in the State. On Saturday afternoon suspectedarmed Maoists looted around Rs. 99 lakh from a vehicle of a bank near Chitrakonda in Malkangiri district.This money was being transported by bank officials in a hired vehicle from main branch of the State Bankof India (SBI) in Malkangiri town to SBI branch at Chitrakonda. As per the complaint lodged by the bankofficials, the vehicle carrying the cash was stopped by 15 armed persons near a temple nearChandiniguda. They overpowered the guard, driver and bank officials in the vehicle and took away thecash. The Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) of Malkangiri district, Anup Sahu said investigation hasbeen launched as some conspiracy behind this loot cannot be ruled out. According to him although thecash was being carried in an unmarked private hired vehicle, the miscreants could manage to track downthe vehicle, which raises suspicion. The persons who were in the vehicle that was carrying the cash are

eing interrogated. On Friday Maoists had blown up two mobile communication towers in Malkangiridistrict. In another incident suspected Maoists pasted posters in Kandhamal district against theinauguration of a newly built Jagannath temple in the district. Through these posters the naxals againlisted out and threatened to kill 11 persons with alleged links with Sangh Parivar. All these incidents wereefforts of the naxals to show up their presence before the elections. Both Malkangiri and Kandhamaldistricts are going to polls in the first phase on April 16. Maoists have given call for poll boycott and havethreatened politicians to refrain from electoral activities. According to sources the communication towerswere destroyed through blasts caused by explosives at Kangrukunda and MPV-22 villages underKalimela police station area. The Maoists also burnt down large quantity of communication cables keptnear the communication towers. Naxals are opposed to the increase in communication network in theirareas of operations as they fear that it would enable flow of information regarding their movement to thepolice. During past few months naxals have targeted communication towers in remote areas ofMalkangiri, Rayagada and Koraput districts of south Orissa. It may be noted that Maoists continue toshow up their violent activity in the Similpal sanctuary area in north Orissa. (The Hindu 5/4/09)Maoists blow up two school buildings (12)Gaya: Maoists on Sunday blew up two school buildings in Bihar and Jharkhand in separate incidents, thepolice said. The rebels demolished the building of a State-run school at Faluka in Bihar’s Gaya district inthe early hours, Superintendent of Police M.R. Naik said. Over 100 heavily-armed ultras threw canebombs targeting the building of Rajkiya Buniyadi Madhya Vidyalaya, Mr. Naik said. The move was beingseen as the ultras’ bid to pre-empt the administration’s plan to keep the security forces there at the time ofelections. In a similar incident, the ultras blew up an educational institute at Makka in Jharkhand. TheMaoists packed explosives in four rooms of ‘Project Vidyalaya Bhavan’ before triggering the blast. Therewas no loss of life, the police said. — PTI (The Hindu 6/4/09)Heavy exchange of fire between security personnel and naxals (12)BERHAMPUR: A heavy exchange of fire between Maoists and security personnel occurred near Badigetain Malkangiri district on Monday. According to police sources, the incident occurred while a combinedteam of Border Security Force (BSF) and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel were combingthe jungles near Badigeta under Kalimela police station area at around 11 am. It may be noted that thedense forest near Badigeta is considered major hiding place of naxals operating in Andhra-Orissa borderarea. As per police officials posted at Kalimela police station, the BSF and CRPF personnel were in thearea to assess the security measures needed to man polling booths in the area. Suddenly some naxalshiding in the forest opened fire at the policemen. The BSF and CRPF personnel immediately retaliatedwith heavy barrage of firing from their automatic weapons. The exchange of fire is said to have continuedtill noon. The policemen are said to have fire around 300 rounds at the Maoists. It was suspected thatmore than 20 naxals, including some women cadres, were in the group that attacked the policemen. Noreports of injury or casualty had been reported from either side. Following the incident addtional forceswere dispatched to the area to intensify combing operation. It may be noted that Maoist violence is on therise in Malkangiri district before the elections. The naxals have already given the call for poll boycott inMalkangiri district along with threats to politicians and officials to refrain from election process. They havealso threatened vehicle owners not to let anyone use their vehicles for election campaign in the district.On Saturday naxals had looted Rs. 99 lakh from a vehicle of State Bank of India near Chitrakonda. OnMarch 28, they had killed former Zilla parishad president Nanda Kumar Kartani(50) near Kalimela. Apartfrom it they have destroyed several government buildings, including police station as well ascommunication towers during past few months. The naxals threat has dampened election heat inMalkangiri district. It may be noted that due to threat of naxals the Election Commission has alreadyordered the polling hours to be reduced by one hour in 19 Assembly segments in naxal prone areas ofSouth Orissa. These Assembly segments are part of Berhampur, Nabarangpur, Koraput and KandhamalParliamentary constituencies. Polling is to be held in these areas in phase I on April 16. (The Hindu7/4/09)Maoist posters triggers panic (12)PARALAKHEMUNDI, April 10: Pamphlets and posters put up by suspected left wing extremists haveappeared in Mohona block, underlining the threat from this radical organization who have declared thatthey intend to disrupt the election process. The killing of Somonath Madika in Malkangiri district yesterday

has now put further pressure on the police to extend more security to the candidates. In the MohonaAssembly segment there are seven candidates in the fray, including three from major political parties. Theposters, neatly computer-typed in Oriya fonts, has questioned the new political alliances that havedeveloped just before the elections. They describe the alliances as an attempt to cheat voters, warningthat the leaders will disappear for the next five years after being elected. They are to be found throughoutthe villages of Paniganda, Raipanka, and Aliganda. Despite the presence of a CRPF camp at Adava andregular combing operations, the radicals have still managed to continue putting up posters.“Theexpectation and frustration of the local people living under abject poverty is the main reason behind thespurt in the radical activities in this zone,” says Mr Laxman Choudhry, a local resident following theactivities of radicals in the region. "The people of this block, mainly tribals, are promised the moon duringelections but after the casting of votes everyone forgets the common men," he notes. "Corruption at alllevels has made the village level a breeding ground for radicals." Another factor adding to the radicals'support base is the return of the local labourers who went outside the state in search of jobs and settledelsewhere. Deprived of their jobs by the recession, they have returned with no source of income. “Thesepeople, mainly youths who went in search of jobs, were the only bread-winners for their family and weresending money home every month. Having returned home, they are unemployed and very frustrated,”says Mr RN Mishra, a resident of Adava. The pamphlets have questioned the role of the political leadersjumping from one party to another without any attention to their ideological impact. In Maharashtra thisrelates to the Congress and the NCP, and in Orissa to the the BJD with the NCP against the Congress,the letter says. It also chides the Left parties for joining hands with parties in the hunt for power throughthe “farcical” voting system. The pamphlets call for a boycott of the elections.(Statesman 11/4/09)Maoists as referees in battle for ballot (12)Gumla: The Lohardagga parliamentary constituency, in Maoist lexicon, can be described as a liberatedland. Spread over two districts of Lohardagga and Gumla, in this constituency, the writ of the Maoistsruns. There could not be a better proof of the fact than total suspension of campaign activity on Sunday,just four days from the day of polling. Such is the fear of the Naxal elements in this constituencyneighbouring Ranchi that no vehicle ever gets down on the mud patch along the pucca road lest there isa mine explosion. On Sunday morning, the local editions of various newspapers carried small insertionson their front pages of the Maoists calling a bandh following the death of their district commander in apolice encounter in Chatra. They did not need to throw pamphlets or make advance announcements tosend the message home. Everybody abides by the Maoist diktat immediately on getting to know about it.“You cannot afford to defy them. In the past two years, there has been no Government move to counterterrorism. On the contrary with the withdrawal of POTA by the Madhu Koda-led UPA Government, severalNaxalites have been let out,” said a prosecuting officer. In Gumla district alone, 100 Maoists have beenallowed to go scot-free. Ironically, the sitting MP from the constituency, Rameshwar Oraon, is a formerDirector General of Police and currently Minister of State for Tribal Affairs in the Manmohan SinghGovernment. His close lieutenant Sukhdeo Bhagat, the sitting MLA from Lohardagga, too on Sundaythought it prudent to stick to home and function from a safe turf. Asked if he was canceling his campaignschedules due to the Maoist call, he preferred diplomatic reply saying that he had not read the morningpapers, knowing full well where the proclamation had appeared. BJP leadership here has no qualms inadmitting that they are living under the Maoist threat. “You were able to find me in the office because Ihave avoided going out due to the bandh call,” said Om Prakash Goyal, the Gumla district president ofthe party. A veteran of many electoral battles, Goyal is adept at reorganising resources. He is quick to callhis lieutenants informing them about their unavailability for a public meeting to be addressed by formerChief Minister Arjun Munda, a few kilometers away. “You have to take charge as we cannot reach themeeting ground due to the bandh call,” he says. The meeting does take place as leaders in Jharkhanduse choppers and seldom traverse through roads laid with minefields. How is it that despite the call forboycott by Maoists, there always is a growing turnout in the polls? “If the Maoists don’t want, there wouldbe no poll in their areas of influence. But like several others, the election for them too is time to make agood harvest,” says Santosh Kumar Mukherjee, a labour contractor responsible for sourcing cheap labourfrom Jharkhand for the tea gardens of West Bengal and Assam. “Bandhs like these build the atmospherefor negotiating a price. Diktat for voting a candidate can be issued in barter for supply of guns, bullets,gelatin sticks and even wads of notes,” says Mukherjee. Since the area is rich in bauxite, gelatin sticks formining purposes is available in plenty. Though a licensed explosive, the books of the mining companiesare managed to arrange supplies for the Maoists in return for the favour of votes. The big corporate too

the border and fomenting trouble in the constituencies which go to the polls on Thursday. (The Hindu23/4/09)Naxals apologise for attack on election officials (12)BERHAMPUR: The CPI(Maoist) through a letter to Malkangiri District Collector Nitin Bhanudas Jawalehas apologised for attacking government officials on election duty during the first phase of election held inthis naxal-infested district on April 16. Along with the apology, the Maoists returned the mobile phonesand cash which were snatched from the polling officials by their cadres. Repolling is to be held in 17booths of Malkangiri district on May 3. Polling had been disrupted at these booths due to naxal menace.Naxals had also manhandled some officials put on election duty that day. The letter claimed that it waswritten by the secretary of the Malkangiri Divisional Committee of the Maoist organisation. As per theletter the violent acts targeting the polling officials were done by the ignorant activists of their frontalorganisations. The letter claimed that naxals did not consider government officials or teachers who wereput on election duty their enemies. The Maoist leader apologized for the incidents. The letter also addedthat the incidents of attack of polling personnel at three booths at Poteru, Tagarkota and Manamkondawould not be repeated. The Maoists sent back Rs. 6,954, four mobile phones and a mobile phonecharger along with the letter. These materials had been snatched from the polling personnel. The Maoistshanded over their letter and other materials to a teacher posted in remote area of Kalimela block. Theteacher passed on these materials to the Kalimela Block Development Officer (BDO), D. Nayak. The BDOhanded over the packet sent by naxals to the District Collector. It is felt that this act of naxals would helpin boosting the morale of government officials deputed for election duty for re-polling to be held on May 3.This seems to be an act of naxals to garner the faith and support of government officials working inremote areas of Malkangiri district. Through the letter the Maoist leader had also sought the cooperationof government officials and teachers to fight corruption and injustice. (The Hindu 1/5/09)Maoists strike Bengal district (12)Kolkata: April 30: The Maoists, whose vote boycott call evoked considerable response during the firstphase of elections in West Bengal, struck in Jamboni area of West Midnapore after the conclusion of thepolling killing three persons. True to the apprehensions voiced by the state government and chiefelectoral officer Debashis Sen, the Maoist shadow loomed large on the polling in Purulia, Bankura andWest Midnapore. Their terror prevented voters from coming out and vote in many places. In at least 93booths, not a single vote was cast. The 49 booths in trouble-torn Lalgarh which were relocated to fourdesignated places saw a turnout of only 13 per cent and in the other 1,000 booths in the Maoist-affectedareas, there was only 20 to 30 per cent polling. However, overall 64 per cent polling was recordedstatewide till 5 pm. The Maoists struck in the Jamboni area off the Dahijuri-Barashol Road after 7 pm. Aland mine was triggered near the Kushbani jungle when polling officials were returning escorted byCentral forces. The blast killed two poll officials, Prasad Banerjee and Saugata Karmakar and the driver."It is confirmed that three people died in the blast and although the bodies have not been identified, theywere all in civil dress," DIG Midnapore, Praveen Kumar said. In Purulia, a BSF constable of 60thbattalion, Mahesh Kumar was injured when there was a blast near polling booth number 135 at theBiramdih Primary School. Later, a land mine was detected and detonated by the police in the Barabazararea at Raidibera. (Asian Age 1/5/09)Naxals using tunnels to escape (12)NAGPUR: Recent analysis of Naxal's combat style has revealed new methods which could prove to be adampner to the security forces. There has been evidence of modern military techniques being used aswell as sophisticated weapons. More interestingly, it's also come to the fore that the Naxals are usingtunnels for quick exits and bunkers as temporary shelters in the jungles of Gadchiroli. Two seized Naxalliterature -- one believed to be a modern military manual and the other a booklet on proposals ofDandakaranya Special Zonal Committee's third meeting in September 2008 -- has given the police afresh perspective to Naxal outlook. This analysis formed the core of the debate in a recently concludedmeeting of police officers from Maharashtra and Chhatisgarh, and the officials from Central governmentheld at Jagdalpur. The 332-page seized military manual (Buniyadi Sainik Pathyakram), published byAwami Jung Prakashan, has brought to the fore that Naxals may be gearing up to launch a full-fledgedwar on the government security forces. The manual, replete with military diagrams and illustrations, hasdetailed descriptions about aspects like principles of war zones, troupe formation, firing area, deployment,

command, control, communication, identifying of targets and such aspects. Security agencies feel thatthere might be manuals of further advanced warfare technique for Naxals which already has a centralmilitary commission (CMC) and state military commissions for grooming cadres into combat techniques.According to a highly placed source in the police department, the recent Mungner encounter in Gadchirolihad laid the fact bare that the Naxals are shifting to military-trained positional warfare with sophisticatedautomatic assault weapons. They are fast distancing their traditional styles of shoot-and-scoot Guerrillawarfare as well as planned mobile warfare for positional warfare. Unlike in the past, black-uniform cladNaxals showed surprising tenacity in the Mungner encounter, where three commandoes were killed, tofight for more than two hours. The C-60 commandoes were pummelled relentlessly with sophisticatedweapons. The Naxals also displayed highly developed military skills and ferocity to take on the might ofthe mighty C-60 commandos. Nepali-looking fighters and their skills had also left the Naxals stunned. Infact, the Border Security Force chopper used to ferry polling parties was also hit by Naxal bullet duringthe recent election. The seized literature, where the plan to have tunnels was found, fell into the hands ofthe security forces during an encounter at Gadchiroli during the recently concluded 'Operation Parakram'.Destroying the tunnels and bunkers constructed by the Naxals is likely to be the main aim of thecombined security forces during the forthcoming joint operations. Security forces are likely to renew theirjoint operation along Maharashtra-Chhatisgarh border soon. During 'Operation Parakram' launched toflush out the Naxals from Gadchiroli jungles after their 01/02 Markegaon carnage that killed 15 cops,security forces were often left foxed by the sheer quickness with which the Naxals would be giving theforces a slip. In fact, senior officials had claimed that security forces have often failed to capitalize onopportunities to trap or eliminate Naxals on several locations even after reaching close to a victory.Naxals not only have made safe exits from encounter spots but also managed to carry away the bodies ofdead or injured. The chopper, used during Operation Parakram, too failed to trace the Naxals during itsair-surveillances. (Times of India 3/5/09)Maoists losing support base among tribals (12)Bermo: Maoists are reportedly losing support of tribals as well as local residents in Nawadih block, astronghold of the rebels in Bermo sub-division that shares border with Hazaribagh and Giridih districts.The rebels have always enjoyed an advantageous position in Upparghat and Pannak in Nawadih due totheir support base among tribals and others. But sources said excess interference of Maoists in to the dayto day life of locals has been eroding their support base in the sub-division. “The Maoists has startedinterfering in family matter, marriages and religious beliefs of citizens. These are instances of rebelsexploiting tribal girls. Tribals are now realising that Maoists are detrimental to development in the areaand have therefore started avoiding them. People don’t join Maoists willingly,” said one of the locals. Anyvillager of Nawadih, who tries to question their conduct or raise his voice, is made silenced forever. Onsome occasions innocent people of the villages were killed by rebels in a cruel manner, which includesstabbing and slitting the victim’s nerves and throat in front of others just to terrorise them. Lives of tribalare at the mercy of Maoists. Police sources said generally villagers serve cooked food to Maoists whenthey visit their village. But when some rebels visited Pannak and Upparghat villages under Nawadihpolice station limits recently, they first asked villagers to eat the food offered to them suspecting poison init. So, the rebels are also well aware of the recent developments and discontentment brewing amongvillagers. Bokaro Superintendent of Police, Laxaman Singh said there is a great idealism and reality. Nobody willingly joins as cadre of CPI(Maoists). Human trafficking in the area is done at gunpoint. Peoplehave started realising that Maoists movement is no people’s movement, she further added People arenow fully mature enough to understand the entail perils that the Maoists have come to symbolise. In someplaces the rebels have got the taste of people’s power, we are hopeful that with the cooperation of themasses things will be much better soon, the SP added While the sources in the police said that thepresent situation in order to deflect the police action against them, the cadres have changed their strategyfor the time being, at least much to the relief of the local villagers of Nawadih. The Maoists do not haveclout in the Jhumra zone because they were once completely driven out from there. Now they move insplinter groups. But there is nothing to worry. The drive against Maoists is on and will continue till they arerouted. Better planning and co-ordination among intelligence agencies will yield results. As per officer inchargeof Bokaro thermal and Nawadih, the CRPF, JAP and State police are ready to thwart any attack ifit gets precise information and on time, Maoists will no longer have a free run, we will arrest them soon.Raj Kishor Mahto, officer-in charge of Bokaro thermal told The Pioneer that two blocks of the Bermo areconsidered happy hunting ground for the ultras left outfit. But after joining of ASP Kranti Kumar known for

his anti-Naxals stand in Nawadih and Gomia blocks compelled the ultras to change their course, theylaunched massive crackdown, smashed several bunkers and recovered huge catches of arms andammunition, which further broke the back bone of extremists and also demoralised the ultras, who laterpreferred to leave the hill and forest. (Pioneer 4/5/09)Ten killed in landmine blast in Chhattisgarh (12)Raipur: Ten persons, including two CRPF personnel and four special police officers, were killed today ina landmine blast triggered by naxalites in Chhattisgarh's Dantewada district, police said. The incident tookplace at Sirguda village in Bastar region under Injram police station area, when naxals blew up a tractorcarrying the special police officers (SPOs) and jawans, Bastar IG A N Upadhyaya told reporters. Thosekilled included four civilians. Three other SPOs were injured in the naxal attack, he said. The injured havebeen admitted to a nearby hospital in Injram, Upadhyaya said. The blast occurred when a joint patrolteam of CRPF, district police force and special police officers, sent to Bhejji village, were returning fromtheir duty in a tractor carrying some civilians, he said. Additional police force has been sent to the spot totake stock of the situation, the police officer added. (Pioneer 6/5/09)Seven cops among 11 killed in Dantewada Naxal attack (12)Raipur: Eleven people, including two CRPF personnel and five Special Police Officers (SPOs), were killedand three injured on Wednesday when Maoists blew up a tractor, triggering a powerful landmine blastnear Chirguda village in Dantewada district in the Naxalite prone South Bastar region of Chhattisgarh.Four villagers were among the dead and three seriously injured SPOs have been admitted to hospital.The Naxalites also took away five rifles and 200 rounds of ammunition from the security personnel afterthe blast. The incident took place in the afternoon when the group was travelling in a tractor from Bhejji.Police said a team had been dispatched to the area to carry out combing operations in the nearby foreststo flush out the rebels. Security personnel, posted in the Bastar region, have been advised against usingany vehicles in the region in view of possible landmine attacks. A day earlier, BJP leader Darbar SinghMandavi was shot dead by suspected Maoists near Ondhi village in the Naxalite prone Rajnandgaondistrict on Tuesday evening. According to initial reports, the incident had taken place when Mandavi wason his way from Murramgaon to Ondhi when unidentified persons intercepted his motor cycle and shothim from a point blank range. However, in a conflicting report, Rajnandgaon district Superintendent ofPolice V K Choubey said that on Tuesday evening three persons had gone to Mandavi’s house in Ondhi,took him to an isolated place and shot him dead. “The assailants were in the age group of 20 to 25 yearsand a manhunt has been launched to trace the assailants (Indian Express 7/5/09)Two policemen killed in naxal blast in Chhattisgarh (12)Raipur: Two policemen were killed and five others injured in a landmine blast triggered by naxals inChhattisgarh's Dhamtari district, 85 km from Raipur on Monday, police said. The incident took place inRisgaon village under Sihawa police station area when the naxals blew up a police vehicle carrying thepersonnel, Bastar IG A N Upadhyaya told PTI. On a tip-off about increased naxal activities in Kankerdistrict of Bastar region, the police party was sent on a combing operation, he said, adding the party wasattacked at Dhamtari on their way to Kanker. (Pioneer 11/5/09)Chhattisgarh: Naxals kill 12 cops, civilian (12)Raipur: In their fifth attack in a fortnight, Maoist guerrillas ambushed a 41-member team of securitypersonnel and later opened indiscriminate fire at them, killing 12 policemen and a civilian and injuring 16others between Risgaon and Madapoti villages in the Mandagiri hill ranges in Dhamtari district,Chhattisgarh, on Sunday night. The incident occurred when the Kanker District Force (DF) personnelwere returning in four vehicles after a routine search in the area. Initially, the insurgents triggered multiplelandmine blasts and later opened fire at the security personnel, before looting weapons from them.“Eleven policemen, a Special Police Officer and a civilian driver are among the dead. As many as 16policemen were injured and seven of the seriously injured were airlifted to the state Capital and wereadmitted to a private hospital there,” Deputy Inspector General of Police (anti-Naxalite operations) PawanDeo said. The dead have been identified as Yeshwant Sahu, Hemant Som, Rajesh Gunendra,Dharmendra Sahu, Santosh Netam, Toman Bhatti, Amit Netam, Radheshyam Nagwanshi, KaushalTiwari, Mahendra Sahu, Aswan Uike, SPO Chandrahas Netam and driver Bhaskar Sahu. Reinforcementsof security forces could carry out search-and-rescue operations only after daybreak on Monday in view of

the possibility of another ambush. Three vehicles in which the security personnel were travelling weredamaged in the blasts, said reports. While this is the first incident of Naxalite violence in Dhamtari district,police sources in Nagari Sihawa said the Maoist rebels had suddenly become active in the region,particularly after Sitanadi wildlife sanctuary was notified as a tiger reserve. Six months ago, the villagersfrom the area affected by the tiger project had organised a massive rally at Nagari Sihawa town,protesting against inclusion of their villages in the reserve area. (Indian Express 12/5/09)Naxals strike, kill 16 cops (12)Nagpur, May 21, 2009: Armed CPI(Maoist) cadres struck in western Maharashtra’s Gadchiroli district —one of the most Naxal-infested regions in the country — on Thursday. A group of more than 70 Maoistsambushed a police team on its way to clear a road blocked by the ultras, killing all 16 personnel, includingfour women constables. The Maoists, who were camping near Tabitola village, bordering Chhattishgarh,opened fire on the police personnel. They triggered landmine blasts later, Superintendent of PoliceRajesh Pradhan said. The attack — the fourth major one in the district so far this year — began around3.30 p.m. and continued for over two hours. More than five dalams (squads) of Maoists, armed with AK-47 rifles and other sophisticated weapons, attacked the police team, which was taken completely bysurprise. This is the first time women constables have been killed in a clash between Maoists and thepolice. A strong force under the guidance of Pradhan was rushed to the spot. The attack was consideredto be in response to the surrender of eight hard-core Maoists, including four women, before the districtadministration on Tuesday evening. The surrender was the first in the district this year. The Maoists hadgiven a call for a two-day shutdown in the district from Wednesday to protest alleged “police excesses” ontribals in the name of operations against the extremists. They had blocked roads by felling trees. “Thepolice team had gone there to remove the road blockade,” Pradhan said. “We got a call about the incidentat 5 p.m. and immediately sent a rescue party. But before it reached the spot, everything was over,” hesaid. Maoists have been active in the tribal district since the 1980s and have been involved in severalviolent activities. They have divided Gadchiroli into two operational divisions: south Gadchiroli and northGadchiroli-Gondia. The divisions have more than 25 armed squads and platoons. Each squad consists of15 to 29 armed cadres. Thursday’s attack was the handiwork of the north Gadchiroli-Gondia division. Theother major Naxal attack in the insurgency-hit district was in February, when CPI (Maoist) activists hadgunned down 15 policemen, including a sub-inspector. They followed it up by killing three morepolicemen in the Dhanora area of the district on April 7. The gunbattle lasted over two hours. And on April16, the Naxalites had fired at a helicopter on election supervision duty in remote Binagunda area nearBhamragarh in the district. No one was injured. (The Hindustan Times 21/5/09)Among police personnel killed by Naxals are wives and mothers (12)GADCHIROLI: In the thickly forested Gadchiroli district, they were no strangers to the dangerous ways oflife. Even if they would have preferred to be only housewives, there wouldn’t have been any guarantee ofpeace and safety. But that usually doesn’t prompt tribal women to join the police — a department that ismost hated by the Naxals who have been active in this region for years. There are only 251 policewomenin Gadchiroli’s 2,500-strong police force. Little did the five policewomen, killed in a Naxal ambush in thedistrict, know then that they would become the first women martyrs in the Red Corridor. Shobha Tayade,Alka Gawade, Shakuntala Alam, Gendkunwar Faredia and Sunita Kallo, all tribals, were among 16 policepersonnel who died in the ambush. On every such tragic occasion, the family enclosure at the gun salutefunction presents the familiar scene of widows wailing at the loss of their husbands. Today, while elevenwidows of dead policemen wailed inconsolably, four husbands sobbed, trying hard to control theiremotions. (Indian Express 23/5/09)Maoists activities displaced 4 lakh tribals: Report (12)New Delhi, May 24, 2009: More than four lakh tribals have been displaced due to extremists activists byMaoists in various parts of India, a non-government organisation has claimed in its latest report. "A totalof 4,01,425 tribals have been displaced due to armed conflicts and ethnic conflicts across India," AsianIndegenous and Tribal People's Network (AITPN), which has special consultative status with the UN'sEconomic and Social Council (ECOSOC), claimed in its report. "These displaced persons (tribals) havebeen living miserable lives without basic amenities including food, water, shelter, medical services,sanitation and livelihood opportunities," it added. About 1.2 lakh members of Gutti Koya tribes of Bastarand Bijapur districts of Chhattisgarh fled to Andhra Pradesh's Khammam between January to June last

year to escape violence by the maoists and the salwa judum activists, the report said. Initially, they wereprovided humanitarian assistance by the Andhra Pradesh Government and tribals benefitted fromNREGA and were also provided with ration cards. But, these benefits were later withdrawn by the AndhraPradesh Government soon after maoists killed more than 30 Greyhound personnel in an ambush atChitrakonda reservoir in Orissa on June 29 last year and police accused Gutti Koya tribals of beingsupporters of the maoists, the report said. (Hindustasn Times 25/5/09)Maharashtra for joint operation against naxals (12)Mumbai: Following Thursday’s brutal naxalite attack, Maharashtra Home Minister Jayant Patil has calledfor a joint operation involving the neighbouring States. Sixteen police officers were ambushed in thenaxal-dominated Gadchiroli district. Speaking to The Hindu on the phone, Mr. Patil said the new operationenvisaged bringing together the Home Ministers of neighbouring naxal-dominated States to counter themenace. It might include simultaneous combing operations. Maharashtra had placed orders for nightvisionbinoculars and some other equipment. “We are waiting for delivery of arms.” The State woulddemand more number of Central battalions. Earlier, the Union government provided two battalions, whichwere later withdrawn. Superintendent of Police Rajesh Pradhan told The Hindu that there were around235 permanent naxal cadres in north and south Gadchiroli. Hinting at a change in their strategy, he saidthat earlier the attacks were carried out by cadres in small numbers. However, now they came in largenumbers, he said. (The Hindu 25/5/09)36 arrested for supporting Maoist bandh (12)MIDNAPORE, 1 JUNE: A Bharat bandh called by the CPI (Maoists) led to the arrests of 36 activists,including 12 women, of the Banspahari unit of the Police Santras Birodhi Public Committee (PSBPC) ofWest Midnapore by the East Singbhum district police at Chakulia in Jharkhand. The activists had takenout a rally in support of the bandh last evening. The incident has kicked up a storm in West Midnapore.As a result, 300 tribals under the banner of the PSBPC kept about 100 jawans of the Indian ReservePolice (IRB) gheraoed in their camp at Niguria in Belpahari from 11 a.m. today in protest. "They aredemanding unconditional release of their fellow members of the unit detained in Chakulia, Jharkhandwithout any specific charge," said Mr Jagannath Sardar, a PSBPC leader, adding that the confinementwould continue till they were released. "Protesting against the arrest of the activists on grounds of staginga democratic movement, they have called a 12-hour bandh in East Singbhum, West Midnapore, Bankuraand Purulia districts on Tuesday," the PSBPC leader added. It was learnt that over 1,200 PSBPC activiststook out a rally of 400 two-wheelers from Banspahari yesterday in support of today’s Bharat bandh calledby the Maoists to protest against the alleged "brutal killing" of Patel Sudhakar Reddy, a Central committeemember and intelligence wing chief of the outfit in Andhra Pradesh, and also the LTTE leader, VellupillaiPrabhakaran, in a "fake encounter" last month. The rally went up to neighbouring Chakulia in EastSingbhum. While returning, the PSBPC activists were detained by the Chakulia police and allegedlybeaten up in custody. Seven two-wheelers and a mini-truck of the PSBPC have also been seized.Meanwhile, Maoists held an open rally at Kantapahari High School ground in Lalgarh last evening givinga fresh challenge to the police. The Maoists’ open rally, organised for the first time in the state, wasattended by a few thousand people. The armed Maoists asked the audience to spread the Lalgarh brandagitation to various places by boycotting the police for their anti-people stance. Mr Gour MohanChakraborti, the spokesman of the outfit, was among the leaders of the outfit who spoke. (Statesman2/6/09)Maoists raid villager’s house, gun down one (12)MUNGER: Over a hundred Maoists, both men and women, equipped with lethal weapons attacked thehouse of one, Vinodi Yadav and Surendra Yadav, in Kareli village under Dharhara police station of thisdistrict on Sunday morning and gunned down one, Siyaram Sharan Yadav, a private bodyguard ofSurendra Yadav. Vinodi Yadav and Surendra Yadav, currently in Munger jail, are prime accused in thecold-blooded murder of the Bangalwa panchayat mukhiya, Kabir Kora, on the fateful day of July 2008.Sixpersons including Vinodi Yadav, Bablu Yadav and Surendra Yadav are the named accused in themukhiya murder case, the FIR of which was lodged on July 31, 2008 under Section 302 of the IPC. It isbelieved that the attack was purported to be in retaliation of the murder of Kabir Kora, who wasconsidered to be close with the Maoist gang operating in the Dharhara-Kajra belt. The additional policesuperintendent, Jamalpur, Sridhar Mandal, in capacity of officiating police superintendent, confirmed the

incident adding that the house in which the victim -- Siyaram Sharan Yadav -- took shelter when theMaoists stormed his house, was set on fire reducing the house to ashes.On the other hand, villagers saidthe Maoists, equipped with firearms and other conventional weapons, had surrounded the entire villagesince early morning as a result of which they lived in panic till the Maoist operation continued. After killingSiyaram Sharan Yadav, the Maoists retreated towards the hilly tracts. CRPF jawans along with a bigcontingent of district police including officers in-charge of at least four police stations are conducting raidson the suspected hideouts of the Maoists, under the supervision of the officiating SP Sridhar Mandal, saidthe police. (Times of India 8/6/09)Maoists run riot in Orissa (12)Bhubaneswar: Heavily armed Maoists went on the rampage in Orissa’s Koraput district late Sunday night,blowing up police stations and outposts and torching vehicles. The police were outnumbered and the eliteanti-insurgency Special Operations Group failed to respond swiftly. The violence marks a highpoint inMaoist attacks over the past fortnight, largely concentrated in Malkangiri district and parts of Koraputdistrict. These districts are sandwiched between Bastar region in Chhattisgarh and the northern areas ofAndhra Pradesh which are the hotbeds of Maoist violence. With security forces at their heels inChhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh, Maoists are believed to have moved into Malkangiri district in Orissaand have been foraying into neighbouring areas over the past month. On Sunday night a large group ofMaoists – eyewitnesses claim there were at least 100 of them, including women – swooped down onBaipariguda and Machhkund where they attacked two police stations. A police outpost at Ramgiri wasalso attacked. As always, the policemen on duty were outnumbered and overpowered. Later, the Maoistseffortlessly faded into the darkness without facing the least resistance. The elite anti-insurgency SpecialOperations Group (SOG) failed to reach the spot in time to take on the attackers. Three platoons of theSOG are stationed at the district headquarters, Koraput. And it takes only one hour to reach Baiparigudafrom Koraput. Two battalions of the IRB are stationed at Kolab town. But neither the SOG nor the IRBresponded to the crisis swiftly. The reason given by the police is that the Maoists had blocked all accessroads and also planted landmines. Logistical problems have again come in the way of the security forcesto engage the Maoists in combat. In the past, it is similar delayed response after the Nayagarh mayhemand the recent attack on Nalco’s bauxite mines at Damanjodi that allowed the Maoists to indulge inmayhem and escape. After the attack at Damanjodi, the Maoists were traced, but were able to flee asvaluable time was lost, said a police official. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik told newspersonshere that the DIG and SP of the area were on the spot and SOG teams were carrying out combingoperations to hunt down those who were involved in the latest attacks. The Maoists first struck on Sundaynight at 10.30 pm when they barged into Baipariguda police station, only 22 km from Jeypore town and40 km from Koraput town. Almost simultaneously they attacked the Ramgiri police outpost, Machhkundpolice station and Lamtapur police outpost. The police stations were blown up with powerful explosives.The Ramgiri outpost was totally razed to the ground. The Maoists also set ablaze two motorcycles, onepolice jeep, one SUV, one scooter and a computer at Baipariguda police station, while one jeep wastorched at Ramgiri outpost. They also snatched the wireless system at Machhkund police station whichwas tuned into the police communications wavelength. Sources said the armed Maoists, wearing policeuniform, entered Baipariguda town at 10.30 pm. Women Maoists kept watch and blocked the road linkingBaipariguda with Jeypore and Malkangiri. Others entered the police station and asked the policemen onduty to leave. The cowering policemen fled without further persuasion. The Maoists also tried to demolishanother newly-constructed building meant for the CRPF, but they couldn't. After finishing their ‘operation’,they left the place around midnight, scrawling some demands in Telugu on a wall and claiming that theybelong to the ‘People’s Liberation Guerrilla Army’. Around the same time another group of Maoistscarrying sophisticated weapons attacked the Ramgiri police outpost. They were accompanied bysupporters carrying traditional weapons like axes and choppers, sources said. The Maoists first tied theASI and other constables to a tree. Then they triggered explosions to blow up the building and set anearby office on fire. At midnight, a third group of Maoists targeted the police station at Machhkund andsnatched the wireless set and also attacked the outpost at Lamtapur. No casualties or injuries to anypolicemen or local residents have been reported in the serial Maoist attacks. On Monday morning, DIGSanjeev Panda and Koraput Superintendent of Police Deepak Kumar visited the area with CRPF jawansand sniffer dogs. Koraput Collector Bichitranand Dash also rushed to Baipariguda to review the situation.There is panic among the residents of the affected areas. Sources said there were intelligence inputsfrom Special Branch regarding the impending attacks and the police were fully aware of the threat. But

they sat on the intelligence report, which speaks volumes about their preparedness to tackle the Maoistinsurgency which is increasing alarmingly by the day. (Pioneer 9/6/09)Police yet to crack whip on Naxalites (12)Mumbai, June 09, 2009: Even as Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Orissa are wonderinghow to counter the growing Naxalite strength, the state police’s desperation is showing in more ways thanone. While struggling for a breakthrough in the ambush and killing of 16 policemen in Dhanora inGadchiroli district in May, the police are yet to nail those involved in a similar attack in Markegaon villagein February. Last week, 36 accused who were charged with murdering 15 policemen in Markegaon —about 60 km from Gadchiroli — were granted bail. But the state police immediately re-arrested 15 of themand charged them with attempt to murder. “We have arrested them in a case of firing in Bandur village,days after the Markegaon incident,” said a police officer investigating the case requesting anonymitybecause he is not authorised to speak to the media. The accused have applied for bail. “The hearing maybe on June 9 or 10,” said advocate Ravindra Donarkar, who is appearing for the accused. The stategovernment is concerned over inputs that the Chhattisgarh-based Naxalite outfit, the DandakaranyaSpecial Zone Committee, plans to establish a stronger presence by taking over the territory of theCommunist Party of India (Maoist), Maharashtra. Monday’s meeting of government representatives ofChhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Orissa was to chalk out a plan to counter themovements of Left extremists in Gadchiroli and other tribal belts of Maharashtra. However, theMarkegaon case is a classic example of the state police’s inability to crack the whip on Naxalite violence.Tribals have been alleging that the police pick up innocent villagers, implicate them in these cases andensure they do not get bail. This is a pattern, said Donarkar. “If the accused get bail in one case they arearrested in another. The idea is to keep them behind bars for as long as possible,” he added. The police,however, claim they have enough evidence against the accused. On May 24, Hindustan Times hadreported about rice farmer Rohidas Shimpi (27) being in police custody since February. He was one ofthe 15 arrested again last week. But his family has been claiming he is innocent and was not present inthe village when the incident took place. Eighteen of the accused belong to Markegaon, Shimpi’s village.(Hindustan Times 9/6/09)Cops killed in Maoist attack in Jharkhand (12)NEW DELHI- It was as if the Communist Party (Maoists) was listening to the Prime Minister, DrManmohan Singh and has come out with a retort. Dr Singh in reply to the debate on motion of thanks tothe President?s address had said that there has to be ?zero? tolerance towards terrorism and the Naxalactivities should be dealt with firmness. He had however accepted that there was a need to have ?a relookat the flow of resources to the tribals and that they were brought to the national mainstream?.If Leftwingextremism continues to flourish in many parts of the country which have tremendous resources ofminerals and other precious things then that will certainly affect the climate for investment. In dealing withLeft-wing extremism we have to convince some of the misguided youth that violence is no way of solvingany problem,? Dr Singh had said while replying to the Lok Sabha debate on President?s address, onTuesday. On Wednesday, eleven security personnel were killed and six others injured in a landmine blasttriggered by the Maoists in Saranda forests of West Singhbhum district of tribal Jharkhand. The Maoistsblew up a mini truck of a joint team of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and local police. The blasthas taken place in mineral-rich tribal area about which the Prime Minister had made rather uncannymention in his speech on Tuesday. For many it is like paying the price for sins of the past. The feudallords, in connivance with the revenue, forest and police officials, once held complete sway of the area.Exploiting the poor, Dalits and the tribals they were the uncrowned kings. Some experts in the PlanningCommission feel the administration?s inability to provide justice to the poor led to the growth ofextremism. Once the Prime Minister used the word ?virus?- more popular in information technology thesedays - to describe the Naxals. There were some in the Planning Commission who pointed out that theNaxalite ?virus? was not really a law and order problem but lack of development. Even Dr Singh said onTuesday that it should be ensured that the benefits of the social and economic developments reached thetribals. The Union Home Ministry has identified 33 districts spread over eight states mostly in tribal areasas worst affected by extreme Left activities and as many as 165 districts having some Naxal presence.(Navhind Times 11/6/09)Maoists kill at will, govt a spectator (12)

June 14: Maoists used as cover a vigilante procession from Lalgarh and engaged CPM activists in a gunbattle that killed at least three people, staining in blood the Bengal government’s “hands-off” policy in the“liberated” belt. The march by those protesting police atrocities had started from Lalgarh, large parts ofwhich have been out of bounds for police since late last year, on Thursday and covered 11km toDharampur in West Midnapore by Saturday afternoon when the killings occurred. Dharampur is a CPMstronghold on the outskirts of Lalgarh. However, in keeping with the government’s reluctance to enforcethe law and risk a backlash, the police stood by as the procession crossed village after village, trailed by aband of armed men suspected to be Maoist guerrillas. The government has been treating potentialflashpoint issues with kid gloves since the March 14 firing in Nandigram that made the land controversy anational issue. However, caution gave way to excesses late last year when Maoists exploded a bomb onthe chief minister’s route in Salboni in West Midnapore. The police torture of teenagers in a crackdownhad triggered a backlash that was exploited by the Maoists to carve out a “liberated zone”. Thegovernment, wary of bloodshed in the run-up to the elections, played along and left the area to theguerrillas’ mercy. So eager was the government to dodge any difficult decision that it accepted theprotesters’ conditions to hold polls. Last night, the CPM paid a price for the government’s inability to act— in an almost identical replay of the events in Khejuri where the administration reduced itself to aspectator while the Trinamul Congress targeted CPM supporters. ( ) The organiser of the procession —the People’s Committee Against Police Atrocities — denied any Maoist hand and blamed “CPM goons”.Sources who refused to be named for fear of retribution said the 700-strong procession marched towardsDharampur yesterday afternoon. CPM activists opened fire and shot arrows to block the procession thathad apparently put at its head women, forced to join in from villages on the way. The marchers thenretreated and Maoists, who were at the rear, stepped forward and opened fire, the sources said. Theguns fell silent by 6pm but firing resumed at 3am today, apparently after the Maoists returned withreinforcements. Around 10 this morning, the bodies of Asit Samanta, Prabir Mahato and Keshab Mannawere found. The three — in their 30s — are said to be CPM supporters. After the battle was over, theadministration imposed prohibitory orders which few believe the police can enforce, given the way thegovernment has let matters come to a head over the past few months. Dharampur has a police camp 500metres from where the shootout took place, but the 20-odd policemen did not venture out. Policereinforcements could enter the village only at 5pm today — over 24 hours after the shootout started. ACRPF team has also headed to the village. One reason for the delay was the fear of mines on the waybut the bigger impediment was the depth of the administration’s isolation from the ground. Theadministration tonight withdrew a police camp at Koima, 10km from Lalgarh police station. One reasoncould be the 90-odd personnel are being called to join efforts to flush out Maoists if the government givesthe go-ahead. Or the camp could have run out of provisions, sources said. Till this evening, no seniorofficial in Calcutta was either able to or willing to give details on the attack. Inspector-general of police(western range) Kuldiep Singh would only confirm the three deaths. “We are investigating,” he said. Thisevening, chief secretary Asok Mohan Chakrabarti said: “I am yet to know the details. I have heard aboutthe incident but could not make enquiries because of preoccupation with Aila relief and today’s all-partymeeting.” (Telegraph 15/6/09)Maoists use women, kids as shield, dare Central forces (12)Lalgarh: Maoists carrying AK-47 rifles are patrolling the roads here and have formed a human shieldcomprising women and children. On Wednesday, the Maoists vowed to prevent storming of the area bysecurity forces as a fresh upsurge of violence killed a CPI(M) leader and two party activists. Having takenover Lalgarh (Red Fort) in West Midnapore district of West Bengal after forcing the police out, agitatingtribals, backed by Maoists, have dug up the roads at several places and blocked others with more than100 tree trunks to obstruct movement as 2,100 paramilitary forces, including the elite CommandBattalions for Resolute Action (COBRA) raised to combat Left-wing extremists, reached Jhargram, nearLalgarh. The Maoists, armed with AK-47 rifles, are patrolling the roads between Lalgarh and Belpahari,another Maoist-infested area, and have created a three-tier human shield by using children and women, asenior police official said. Approachable from four directions by metalled and mud roads, Lalgarhremained cut-off from three sides after tribals torched the police stations and ransacked the houses oflocal CPI(M) leaders and took over the entire area. Earlier in the day, six unidentified gunmen ridingmotorcycles shot dead a local CPM leader and two party supporters. The dead Marxist leader, AmalMahato, the CPM’s Shimli branch secretary, was part of a village resistance group which was assistingthe police against the Maoists. According to a senior Left Front leader, Chief Minister Buddhadev

Bhattacharjee told a Left Front meeting that a squad of 100 Maoists armed with sophisticated weapons,along with some men trained at Chaibasa in neighbouring Jharkhand, have sneaked into Lalgarh andadjoining areas. Meanwhile, a Maoist leader, Bikash, daring the State Government, said the “people willresist” any attempt by the administration to send paramilitary forces into the area. “We will resist the entryof the administration or the forces in every possible way,” Bikash told PTI over phone. On the other hand,a senior police official at Jhargram said, “We are not in a hurry at present and are watching the situation”.Central forces “have not been deployed at Lalgarh as yet”, he added. Tribals of West Midnapore andadjoining areas have been protesting “police atrocities” on them in the wake of the landmine blast atSalboni on November 2, 2008, landmine attack on the Chief Minister’s convoy. Saugar Sengupta addsfrom Kolkata: Having burnt its fingers in Nandigram, the Left Front Government does not want to letLalgarh become another killing field. Bhattacharjee, who met his allies in the Left Front on Wednesday tobrief them about the situation, is believed to have decided not to order a crackdown right away butcontain the Maoist violence within Lalgarh. Bhattacharjee has sought 600 paramilitary personnel from theCentre. Lalgarh is not a large place and the violence has been restricted to this tribal area and Salboni. Inlast May’s Lok Sabha election, the CPM had managed to retain all its seats from the tribal districts ofBankura, Purulia and West Midnapore although the party was virtually routed in other parts of the State.West Bengal Chief Secretary AM Chakrabarty said on Wednesday the Maoist-backed Peoples’Committee Against Police Atrocities was planning to create a human shield of women and children aspeople did in Nandigram to inflict maximum civilian and tribal casualties in the event of a crackdown sothat the Lalgarh fire could spread to contiguous districts. “The Government will not let that happen,” hesaid. While a section of the Left Front wants the Government to adopt a wait-and-watch policy, anothersection, led by CPM leader and Transport Minister Subhas Chakrabarty, wants immediate action. He saidthe Government’s failure to act early had allowed the Maoist movement to spread in other areas likeDharampur and Belatikri, and was now threatening the Jindal steel plant at Salboni. The administrationsaid the Government’s role would be defensive and not offensive. According to the Chief Secretary, theforces would react only to contain the advance of the Maoists while the latter publicly warned of a massupheaval in case Central forces’ forced entry in the area. The PCPA plans to enter Salboni after capturingDharampur, a CPM stronghold where it has forced 5000 Marxist supporters to surrender arms and join itsranks. “We will enter Salboni even if they call 60 companies of CRPF,” Maoist leader Bikash said,admitting that the PCPA had the full backing of the Maoists. (Pioneer 18/6/09)Maoists turned tribal resentment into anti-CPM weapon (12)LALGARH: A well-planned strategy and a perfectly executed warplan, using tribal grievance against aninactive administration and a corrupt CPM to garner local support. That, in a nutshell, sums up how theMaoist movement gathered momentum in West Midnapore, Purulia and Bankura with Lalgarh as thebase. The insurgent outfit has been steadily spreading its tentacles and extending its strongholds almostevery day at a furious pace over the last seven months. It has reached areas like Jhalda, Bagmundi andAyodhya in Purulia and Ranibandh and Jhilimili in Bankura. If Salboni which is believed to be the nexttarget falls, then almost the entire western part of the state would be lost. The Maoists did not win thearea overnight. In fact, they found it difficult to make headway initially. Till the merger of People's WarGroup (PWG) and Maoist Communist Centre (MCC), the Left radicals were active only in pockets ofBinpur block II and in the area from Belpahari to Banshpahari and were never a force to reckon with.Then the merger took place in 2004 and the Maoist movement took a leap ahead. The two groupsgalvanized perfectly with the armed wing of PWG the People's Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA)providing a militant edge to the theoretical and political campaign of MCC. It helped Maoists spread theirbase in the Jharkhand-Orissa border areas that served as a transit point. Things took another turn withthe arrest of Somen, the CPI(Maoist) state secretary in 2008. It intensified the PLGA's militant campaign.The landmine attack on the chief minister's convoy in Salboni on November 2 served as a flashpoint. Itshook the police into action and a combing operation was launched at Salboni, barely 9 km fromMidnapore town. Three PLG squads were active in the area by then the Belpahari squad under MadanMahato, the Lalgarh squad under Shashadhar Mahato and the Dolma squad in Purulia. Police chargedShashadhar and raided Chhotobelia, his village. The combing operation which had led to excessesalienated the locals. It fuelled a movement and led to the formation of People's Committee against PoliceAtrocities (PCPA) which became the frontal organization helping to shield the Maoists who worked frombehind the scenes. The tribals united on an anti-police and anti-government plank joined PCPAspontaneously and it helped Maoists form a network over a larger area. The movement spread like

wildfire across Jangalkhand. Using the PCPA local committees, Maoists gained access to information andlogistical support from every corner of the region. From November 12 when PCPA was formed at a rallyat Kantapahari the 14 km road connecting Lalgarh police station with the Ramgarh outpost remainedblocked for a month. Maoists used the time to strengthen their network, taking advantage of the fact thatneither the administration nor police could enter. Soon, all three roads leading to Lalgarh through Pirakataforest, from Midnapore town through Dharampur and from Goaltore were cut off. With PCPA in theforefront, senior Maoist leaders and armed outfits started infiltrating. Leaders like Chandrasekhar andAkash camped there, helping strengthen the base. It was in this period that the PCPA influence spread toBinpur I and II, Jamboni, parts of Jhargram block and Salboni. Now, all areas in a 30-km radius of Lalgarhhave been captured'. Strengthened by the local support base, they now went on uniting all the anti-CPMforces. Between January and June, several CPM leaders were killed. The Maoists finally came out in theopen with a procession at Madhupur village, which led to an attack on several CPM leaders' houses. Eversince, a new area has been added to the Maoist territory every other day. Babuibasha, Shaluka,Ramgarh, Belatikri and its adjacent areas fell soon. And finally, the entire stretch from Lalgarh to Dherua,including Dharampur, has been captured last Sunday.It could be mission Salboni next. For that's justabout the only area where CPM still exists. If that happens, Maoists could shift their base to Garbeta andKeshpur. (Times of India 18/6/09)Maoists stop journalists on way to Lalgarh (12)NIMATALA: Some journalists covering the operation to flush out Maoists from West Bengal's Lalgarharea had the scare of their lives Friday when armed Maoists stopped their cars and seized their mobilesin this village close to the trouble zone. About 25 Maoists, dressed in full battle fatigues and somecarrying assault rifles, came charging down the road and asked the journalists to alight from their vehiclesbefore taking away their mobiles. The Maoists, led by their action squad leader Bikash, wereaccompanied by more than 100 activists of the tribal People's Committee Against Police Atrocities(PCAPA), said one of the intercepted journalists. Nimatala village lies between Pirakata, from where thesecurity forces started their operation Thursday, and Bhimpur where the forces have set up camp to getto Lalgarh, about 150 km from state capital Kolkata. Following Bikash's instructions, PCAPA leader ManojMahato then spoke to the mediapersons alleging that the police were committing atrocities on "innocentvillagers"."They are attacking the villagers, damaging houses and looting rice. Police must free those theyhave arrested and pay compensation to the villagers," the journalist quoted Mahato as saying. Mahatoalso demanded the forces be withdrawn. The Maoists then started planting mines in the area beforeasking the journalists to go to Bhimpur through a bypass. "We don't consider the media enemies," Bikashsaid before returning the mobile phones to the journalists. At a media conference in Kolkata, state HomeSecretary Ardhendu Sen said there were reports of attacks on journalists by the Maoists and PCAPAmembers. "We have been told that bricks have been hurled on media cars. We request those who haveentered the troubled area by following the security forces, not to go ahead," he said. "This may beextremely risky. Please be extremely cautious and don't make the work of the police more and moredifficult." Security forces have launched a three-pronged offensive to flush out the Maoists from Lalgarh.The Maoists and their tribal supporters dug up roads, cut trees to block roads and put up a "humanshield" to prevent the security forces from advancing. The heavily armed central and state forcesresumed their operation Friday morning after a night halt near Koima, about 10 km from Lalgarh. Duringthe last few days, the agitators have torched CPI-M offices, driven away the party's supporters and forcedpolice to wind up several camps, thereby establishing a virtual free zone. (Express Buzz 19/6/09)Centre backs appeal for talks with Maoists (12)NEW DELHI: The Centre on Friday endorsed the appeal of West Bengal Chief Minister BuddhadebBhattacharjee to Maoists and tribals in violence-ridden Lalgarh area to lay down arms and come for talks.Home Minister P. Chidambaram said, “If they wish to talk, they should come forward to do so. We will behappy to facilitate the talks.” He was talking to journalists after a meeting of the Union Cabinet here. Hesaid the ongoing operations, launched in Lalgarh area by the State police and the paramilitary forces,would take more time. “Progress will be slow. They [forces] are making progress. So far, the operation isgoing according to plans, but they must be prepared for the unexpected. I sincerely hope that with thekind of action we have advised, the operation will be successful.” “An operation of this kind will take sometime. In fact, it will take considerably more time than was anticipated,” the Minister said. Mr. Chidambaramsaid the forces were “moving, and moving cautiously” and the ongoing operation was not against tribals

ut only against the naxalites. Adequate number of police personnel had been deployed. The police weretaking the lead and the CRPF was assisting them. Asked whether the security forces could expand theiroperations to adjoining Bankura and Purulia districts, he said since both districts were near Lalgarh, theongoing operations “could take them to Bankura and Purulia too.” Asked why the CPI(Maoist) was notbanned by the West Bengal government, as was done in other States, Mr. Chidambaram said the issuewas pending with the State government. “There are voices in Bengal which have raised the demand for aban. We think they should be banned as in other States.” Mr. Chidambaram said the Cabinet Committeeon Economic Affairs cleared a Rs. 2,000-crore project for interlinking all police stations through Crime andCriminal Tracking Network and Systems (CCTNS). The Information Technology-enabled project proposalaims at creating a comprehensive and integrated system for enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness ofpolicing at the police station level by adopting principles of e-governance, he said. Streamlining theinvestigation and prosecution processes, strengthening the intelligence gathering machinery, improvingthe public delivery system, citizen-friendly interface and nationwide sharing of information on crime andcriminals were the objectives of the project. (The Hindu 20/6/09)Four Maoists killed, six policemen injured as forces reach Lalgarh (12)Lalgarh (West Bengal), June 20 : Security forces claimed to have gunned down four Maoists andmarched through a forest to establish their control over Lalgarh Saturday before the rebels hit back,injuring six policemen in a landmine blast on the third day of the West Bengal government's offensiveagainst the leftwing radicals. Using mineproof vehicles and landmine detectors, the forces Saturdaymorning traversed five kilometres through the Jhitka forest, considered a Maoist den, to set up a basecamp at the Lalgarh police station in West Midnapore district after a 36-hour march that began fromPirakata Thursday afternoon. Though the rebels failed to put up any resistance at Jhitka, they struck backwith a vengeance this afternoon at Kadashole under Goaltore police station by triggering the blast on thePingoboni-Sarenga road and engaged the forces in a gunbattle. Police said four Maoists were killed in thefirefight but top Maoist leader K. Koteshwar Rao denied any casualties on their side. Two policemen hadbeen injured in a landmine blast Friday. Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee briefed Prime MinisterManmohan Singh, Home Minister Chidambaram and Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee in New Delhiabout the situation and said his government was seriously considering a suggestion to ban the Maoists."Chidambaram has advised me to ban the outfit. I said I will give the matter serious thought,"Bhattacharjee told newspersons. "I have started thinking on what to do (about banning it)." He said theoperation in Lalgarh to flush out the Maoists would continue for some time and added he was happy thatthe central government had "acted quickly" to send forces for the offensive. A day after their advance wasslowed down in the face of stiff resistance from the rebels, the central and state forces includingcommandos of the specialised anti-Maoist wing of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) tasted somesuccess as they reached the Lalgarh police station that had been kept locked by policemen from insidesince November as they were apprehensive of their own security. The security forces have beenadvancing from four directions towards Lalgarh, where the Maoist guerrillas have been active inorganising a movement alongside a tribal body. Lalgarh is 200 km from Kolkata. Apart from the maincontingent at Bhimpur, three teams are moving from Jhargam and Goaltor in West Midnapore district andSarenga in Bankura. Koteshwar Rao alias Kishanjee urged the authorities to halt the operations andapologise to the masses to begin a dialogue and exhorted Bhattacharjee not to "dance to the tune" of thecentral government. Deputy Inspector General (Midnapore range) of state police Praveen Kumar threw achallenge to the Maoists. "We have surprises in store for them," he said. "Reaching Lalgarh is one part ofthe story. Our main objective is to see to it that the authority of the constitution, the state is restored byestablishing the rule of law," Kumar told the media at the police station. He warned the Maoists that theforces would pay them back in the same manner if they were fired upon and the rebels would be putbehind bars. "We would never like to attack anybody other than the Maoists. But when there are humanshields against us, then some things happen on the spur of the moment. But we will show restraint as faras common people are concerned." A paramilitary trooper, participating in the operation, died of heatstroke after falling sick at the Jhitka jungles, Inspector General of state police (Law and Order) RajKanojia told IANS in Kolkata. This is the first death among security forces after they started the march. Onthe other hand, spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi Shankar Saturday said Maoists in Lalgarh are willing fornegotiations if their basic demands for water and electricity are met. Lalgarh has been on the boil sincelast November when a landmine exploded on the route of the convoy of Chief Minister Bhattacharjee andthen central ministers Ram Vilas Paswan and Jitin Prasada. Complaining of police atrocities after the

last, angry tribals launched an agitation virtually cutting off the area from the rest of the district. Duringthe last few days, the agitators have torched CPI-M offices, driven away the ruling party's supporters andforced the police to leave, thereby establishing a virtual free zone. Maoists are active in three westerndistricts of the state - West Midnapore, Bankura and Purulia. They also backed the Trinamool Congresssponsoredmovement against the state government's bid to establish a chemical hub at Nandigram inEast Midnapore district. (New Kerala 20/6/09)Naxal situation in Lalgarh sensitive and tense: Chidambaram (12)New Delhi (PTI) The situation in West Bengal's Lalgarh area, where security forces are fighting to clear aMaoist siege, is "sensitive" and "tense", Home Minister P Chidambaram said on Sunday while askingpolitical leaders to avoid going to the conflict zones. "The situation in Lalgarh is sensitive and continues tobe tense," he said while also making a reference to a call for a two-day bandh from tomorrow given by theCPI-Maoist in five naxal-affected states of Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Orissa and West Bengal.. "Iappeal to all citizens especially political leaders, NGOs and others not to go to the conflict areas," he saidin a statement here. The Home Minister said the security forces must carry out their work without"distraction". The security forces, which have reclaimed control of key Lalgarh police station area, were onSunday pushing deeper into the region to break the Maoist siege of 17 villages considered to bestrongholds of the ultras and tribals backed by them. Meanwhile, in view of the two-day bandh call givenby the CPI-Maoist from Monday, the Centre has asked five Naxal-hit states to remain alert againstpossible "demonstrative acts of violence" by left-wing extremists. The alert was issued by the UnionHome Ministry on the basis of intelligence inputs. The inputs have been shared with the states who havebeen asked to take "precautionary and pre-emptive measures" ahead of the two-day strike call given byCPI (Maoist) on June 22 and 23, in Bihar Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Orissa and West Bengal, AdditionalSecretary (Naxal Management) in Home Ministry D R S Chaudhary said in a statement. "All other stategovernments have also been alerted," the statement said. The government has also asked securitypersonnel to remain vigilant against IEDs and landmines which have targeted them earlier. "While everyeffort will be made to maintain law and order and to ensure security of people, it is requested that peopleshould also remain vigilant and cooperate with the police and other security personnel," it said. Securitypersonnel have reclaimed control of key Lalgarh police station area in West Midnapore district of WestBengal and are moving ahead to break the Maoist siege of 17 villages considered strongholds of theultras and tribals backed by them. (The Hindu 21/6/09)'Maoists' vent ire on Citu office in Purulia (12)PURULIA/NANDAKUMAR (EAST MIDNAPORE): Suspected Maoists set fire to a Citu office in Purulia'sBarabazar around midnight on Monday. While leaving the area, the attackers shouted slogans warningthat the state was playing with fire by continuing with police and paramilitary operations at Lalgarh. ACPM local committee office was also set ablaze by an angry mob in East Midnapore's Nandakumar. Thebuilding housing the office of the Citu-affiliated Beldi Apide Mine Employees ' Union in Barabazar, Purulia, was partially gutted. The attackers who set the office ablaze shouted 'CPI (Maoists) Zindabad' , warningthat more fires would burn if the Lalgarh operation continues. "Prima facie evidence indicates that Maoistsare behind the blaze. We are investigating ," said Purulia SP Rajesh Yadav. No one has been arrestedyet. The district CPM leadership , however, alleged that Trinamool was behind the attack, not Maoists.CPM state committee member Monindra Gope and Gangadhar Mahato, secretary of the mine employees'union, alleged that Trinamool, disguised as Maoists, had carried out the attack. Rejecting the allegation,district Trinamool president K P Singh Deo said: "We are not involved." However, fingers are beingpointed at Trinamool for Tuesday morning's attack and subsequent blaze at the CPM local committeeoffice at Phekua Bazaar in Nandakumar. Locals alleged that women were frequently harassed inside theoffice. They alleged that a girl student was attacked there on Monday . When her family went to protest,they were severely beaten up by CPM activists and supporters, alleged Bablu Mondal, a local. Localsbarged into the CPM office on Tuesday morning to protest the alleged harassment of women andMonday's attack. An altercation broke out between them and party workers. The mob attacked the partyworkers and set the office ablaze. A fire tender was sent and managed to control the blaze after a while.(Times of India 24/6/09)Bengal says yes to ban, Maoists to talks (6)

Kolkata: Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee’s government on Tuesday chose the middle path between the Centreand the CPM on tackling the Maoist rebellion in the state, agreeing to implement the ban on the CPI(Maoist), but claiming the freedom to decide on the manner of its implementation. West Bengal had beenIndia’s only Naxal-affected state where the CPI (Maoist) was not proscribed. Bhattacharjee had, aftermeeting with home minister P Chidambaram on Saturday, said he would “seriously think” about changingthat. His party, however, reacted strongly after Chidambaram specifically included the CPI (Maoist) in theministry’s list of banned terrorist organisations yesterday — decrying the move in Delhi and Kolkata. “Theban (on the CPI (Maoist) was imposed by the Centre and it is applicable to the whole country. So wehave no other option but to accept it... But it is the state government which will decide how the ban will beimplemented,” Bhattacharjee said after a cabinet meeting today. “While we have to accept the central banwe have to keep in mind that there is one opinion among Left leaders that by banning it you cannot solvethis problem. So we have to make a 3-pronged strategy to combat this menace. The three areas are,socio-economic development of tribal areas, political campaign and mobilisation that will include rallies,distribution of leaflets, meetings etc. and, finally, administrative measures,” Bhattacharjee said. The chiefminister said his government had already set up a task force for the development of tribal areas, andspent Rs 13 crore on irrigation, agriculture, education, drinking water, etc. There appeared to be someconfusion over this claim: At the Cabinet meeting, Agriculture minister Naren Dey told Bhattacharjee, “Iam the minister for agriculture, but I am not aware of any such committee.” Facing the heat from securityforces at Lalgarh the Maoists today said they were ready to negotiate, but only after a ceasefire. “We areready for talks with the Centre and West Bengal government if the intellectuals who visited the troubledLalgarh area last Sunday, arrange for a meeting,” CPI (Maoist) leader Sagar said. But a spokesman forthe Naxal outfit, Gour Chakraborty, said the meeting would be possible only if central forces werewithdrawn and the state police announced a ceasefire. (Financial Express 24/6/09)Maoists & Writers' Marxists are ideological comrades (12)It does not matter whether Lalgarh is 170 km from Writers' Buildings or just 17 feet away. The attitude andthe apologetic defence of the central forces show it all. First, Marxist rulers resisted banning the Maoists.Then, the ruling front is at pains to issue daily statements that the central forces will not be allowed tocommit excesses on the tribals (read CPM workers). Does the chief minister think that the security forceslove to commit excesses on tribals that he had to state in public about being vigilant on them? Was hevigilant against the excesses of the Maoists in the last 10 years? Did he ever issue any statement againsttheir violence and reign of terror? Did he ever think of banning the organization before the Centre exertedpressure on him? Has he issued any one-liner appreciating security jawans for the excellent work theyhave done risking their lives? The fact of the matter is, there is hardly any difference between the Maoistsand the Marxists ruling from Writers'. Both are invariably ideological comrades one operating from thejungles and the other enjoying urban amenities. Both have alien heroes and adore Lenin, Stalin and Mao,who were responsible for the killings of millions of people. They all have an extra amount of love andloyalty for the alien powers and have no qualms accepting their support. They have never condemnedChina for 1962 and still have no clear policy on its claim over Arunachal Pradesh and Aksai Chin. And thepoor tribals remain cannon fodder for demonstrations, with half-clad villagers wielding indigenousweapons and singing international for a CPM magazine. One has to go and see the abject poverty andnothingness in areas adjoining Lalgarh. Jungle, soil, leaves, small huts completely synchronizing with thenature and tribal men and women, semi-clad, working day and night to eke out an existence. You will beamazed, what meticulous design it takes to keep your own people so low? It becomes a vested interestfor the Red revolutionaries and their art-paper magazine producers to keep people poor, backward, sothat they are always ready to provide the crowd and the boys for mass struggle and revolutionaries zealwhile the leaders enjoy Padma's Ilish. And then the usual page 3 clique in metros, would say with anoomph: "Oh, these Marxists are fighting for the poor, like Buddha ji, a very nice man'." If votes were notdiverted in this Lok Sabha election to other non-CPM parties, the CPM tally would have come down from30 MPs to just one under Mr Nice. Trinamool, Congress and BJP kept Kolkata Corporation out of CPM'sreach by a clever strategy in 1995 and with a Congress mayor; BJP had its deputy mayor. One mustrevive that spirit in national interest and make sure that CPM is ousted in the next Assembly election.Only then will Bengal begin to regain pride, ending the era of goli and garibi. It's interesting to know howthe Marxists reacted to Lalgarh. Was it in consonance with the way they had reacted to other suchincidents of violence? It was a sort of a battle to recapture the lost ground by the CPM from local tribals,who had formed a committee against police repression aided by Marxist workers. Hence the ghost of

Maoists helped. The newspapers writing fearlessly against Buddha's partisan regime were stopped adsand the other Bangla paper had to proclaim it feared none but god and hence it will continue to exposeBuddha's helping hand to the Lalgarh's red Stalins. The historical truth is Marxism has always been rudeto its own people and deceit and doublespeak have been ingrained in it since the early formations of theBolsheviks when bread and dictatorship of the proletariat were assured. Now, what will happen to thetribals when the security forces leave Lalgarh? Someone needs to ask what has been the contribution ofthe government in West Bengal swearing by an ideology that binds it into a psychological camaraderiewith Maoists both promising the rule of the proletariat? What the poor got except bullets andbackwardness? (The writer is director, Dr Shyama Prasad Mookerjee Research Foundation) (Times ofIndia 1/7/09)Security forces reclaim two more Maoist-infested areas in West Midnapore (12)Lalgarh (West Bengal), July 4 : Security forces and police reclaimed two more areas from Maoists in WestBengal's West Midnapore district on Saturday. In a four-pronged attack, a team of security forces andpolice set out from bases in Binpur, Pirakata, Salboni and Ramgarh to converge on Kalimudri andMadhupur villages, West Midnapore Superintendent of Police Manoj Verma told reporters. The fifth-phaseof the operation, entering its 16th day, was to clear the villages and forests by building a protective ringafter capturing key locations to prevent movement by Maoists who might still be holed up. 'The forces metwith no resistance and flushing out operations were conducted on an eight kilometer stretch,' Verma said.'The operations began at 6:00 a.m. and the forces reached Kalimudri and Madhupur by afternoon,' headded. 'We have been unable to enter the area in the last eight months. We are now receivingcooperation from the people,' Verma said. In Kolkata, State Home Secretary Ardhandu Sen said threeMaoists, including a woman, were arrested today from Ayodhya Hills in Purulia district from whomexplosives, a rifle and Maoist literature were seized. The security forces, which began the operations inWest Midnapore against Maoist-backed tribals on June 19 after demolishing a human shield by tribals atPirakata, took over Lalgarh police station on June 20, Ramgarh on June 27, Kantapahari on June 29 andDharampur on July one. The Maoist-backed tribals, who began their agitation in November last yearagainst 'police atrocities' had taken over the areas after police withdrew from camps fearing that theirfirearms would be snatched. The tribals went on the warpath after police raids on their homes following alandmine blast by Maoists on November 2 at Salboni in the district, which Chief Minister BuddhadebBhattacharjee and two former Union ministers had narrowly escaped. (New Kerala 4/7/09)'Naxals carried out 1,128 raids, killed 455' (12)New Delhi The country has witnessed a total of 1,128 incidents of naxal violence till June 30 this yearwhich left 455 civilians and security forces dead. In a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha, Minister ofstate for Home Ajay Maken said there has been an increased level of naxal violence in various states ofthe country. "There has been increased level of naxal violence especially in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand,Bihar, Orissa, Maharashtra and West Bengal," Maken said. He said a total of 107 naxalites were killedand 861 naxals were arrested during the same period. Replying to a question if the Centre has urgedStates to deploy their own security forces to control violence in various parts of the country includingLalgarh in West Bengal, Maken said concerned states take appropriate action to deal with left wingextremism issues in the state. He said the Centre supplements their efforts in several way and listeddeployment of Central Paramilitary Forces, CoBRA battalion, setting of Counter insurgency and AntiTerrorism schools, modernisation and upgradation of state police and intelligence sharing among others.Maken also listed reimbursement of security-related expenditure, filling up of critical infrastructure gapsunder the scheme of Special Infrastructure in Left wing extremism affected states, assistance incommunity policing and civil actions besides other steps as assistance being provided to states. He alsosaid the internal security situation in the country remains largely under control. "No major terrorist incidenthas been reported in the hinterland during the current year. Similarly, no major communal incident hasbeen reported in the current year. In overall terms, the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir hasshown perceptible improvement. The security situation in Assam, Manipur an Nagaland continues to be amatter of concern whereas, Sikkim and Mizoram have remained peaceful. The situation in Tripura hasimproved significantly over the years. Barring sporadic violence in Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh,the situation has remained peaceful," he said. He also said "the National Investigation Agency has beenconstituted under the National Investigation Agency Act, 2008 to investigate and prosecute offences

under the Acts mentioned in the schedule, which, inter-alia, includes the Unlawful Activities (Prevention)Act, 1967, as amended in 2008". (Express India 7/7/09)Two tribals shot dead by Maoists in Chhattisgarh (6)RAIPUR: Two people appointed as special police officers (SPOs) to assist security forces were gunneddown by Maoists in Chhattisgarh, police said Thursday. The killings took place late Wednesday in theforests of Bijapur, about 450 km south from here, when a dozen armed Maoists attacked the two tribals --Chhapri Surendra,23, and Mukesh Poriami, 25. After a brief interrogation, the militants took the SPOs toan isolated place and shot them dead, said Avinash Mohanty, superintendent of police (Bijapur). SPOsare locals working as special officers for the police. They are not recruited as police officers but areassigned special tasks and keep vigil as they are better acquainted with the place. (Express Buzz 9/7/09)Dooars social activists reject Maoist tag (12)SILIGURI, 9 JULY: Social activists in Siliguri have opposed the administration's alleged move to brandvoluntary organisations working among the tea workers in the Dooars as “Maoists”. The inspector generalof police (IGP), north Bengal, Mr KL Tamta, had recently stated that the police were “keeping an eye onthe organisations active in the closed tea estates in the Dooars, apprehending some possible link with theMaoists”. A number of Siliguri-based social activists, including a few teachers of North Bengal University,today convened a Press conference at the Child Welfare Organisation in the town to voice their protestover the IGP's remark. “The civil administration and the police ~ who have miserably failed in deliveringgood governance and security across the Dooars tea estates ~ are now conspiring to pass the buck ontothe social organisations that are engaged in positive work there. We strongly condemn the attempt of thepolice to put a ‘Maoist’ tag on the social organisations,” said Mr Anirban Choudhury of NESPON.According to him, the IGP's remark is part of a bigger conspiracy of the ruling parties to regain their lostfooting in the Dooars by frightening the locals. Among those present at the Press conference thisafternoon were ~ NBU teachers Mr Ajit Roy, Mr Ranjit Pal, Mrs Shukla Pal, Mr Tamas Mazumdar and MrNikhiliesh Roy, APDR Siliguri secretary Mr Abhiranjan Bhaduri, Mr Arnab Bhattacharya, Mr AnirbanChoudhury and activist Mr Rupak Mukherjee. They alleged that the state government was trying to createa rift between the Adivasis and communities living in the Dooars forest villages by distributing land titlesselectively to the Adivasis. “The administration is also violating the provisions of the Forests Rights Act bytwisting and turning them to suit the political agenda of the ruling Left parties,” Mr Choudhury alleged.(Statesman 10/7/09)Naxals blow up forest beat house (12)BERHAMPUR: Maoists blew up a beat house of the forest department at Paniganda village under Adabapolice station in Gajapati district in south Orissa in the wee hours of Friday. Three innocents of Panigandawere also injured by the blast of another landmine which was planted in the area by the naxals. The threeinjured were shifted to the MKCG medical college hospital in the city for treatment. The three injured wereJugal Kishore Dandasena, Kanhu Gadnayak and Prashant Paika. Condition of Prashant was serious. Theother two received minor injuries. Speaking to The Hindu, the Superintendent of Police (SP) of Gajapatidistrict, Sanjiv Arora said around 30 armed Maoists had reached the forest beat house at Paniganda ataround 3 am. They overpowered the lone forest guard, Kameswar Rao present at the beat house. Mr Raowas bound to a nearby tree. Naxals burnt up all furniture and documents in the beat house. They thenblasted its building by landmines. Before escaping from the spot, they also planted landmine in the areaaimed at police patrols who would reach the spot. Three villagers became its victim. Speaking tonewsmen at MKCG medical college hospital, Dandasena said he and his two injured compatriots were ontheir way to the fields to attend nature’s call at around 5 am. They accidentally stepped over thelandmine. The pressure activated landmine. The Orissa unit of the outlawed Communist Party of India(Maoist) gave a statewide bandh call on Friday to protest the ban on their organisation and alleged arrestof innocent people by police. Maoists also cut down some trees to block the road between Adaba andPaniganda. This disrupted the road communication between Berhampur and Rayagada for some time inthe morning. Mr Arora informed that the trees had been removed and the road was clear for traffic. Thisviolent act coincided with the statewide bandh call given by the Orissa unit of the banned CommunistParty of India (Maoist) on Friday. As per the press releases sent to newsmen, the Maoists had given thisbandh call protesting against the ban order and arrest of their supporters. This bandh call had someimpact in remote areas of Rayagada and Kandhamal districts. Maoists cut down trees at several places to

lock the roads leading to Chandrapur block in Rayagada district. They also cut down trees to block theNH 217 between Sorada in Ganjam district and Daringbadi in Kandhamal district. This road was clearedby afternoon. Naxals also blocked the Daringbadi-Brahmanigaon road by fallen trees in Kandhamaldistrict. (The Hindu 11/7/09)30 cops killed in Chhattisgarh Maoist strikes (12)Raipur Thirty security personnel including Rajnandgaon Superintendent of Police Vinod Kumar Choubey,49, were killed today in three attacks at Madanwada village near Manpur-Mohalla in the district. Theattacks occurred in one of the most remote Naxal-hit areas where the communication network is dismallypoor. Deputy Inspector General of Police (anti-Naxalite operations) Pawan Deo said the Maoists hadgunned down two security personnel near the Madanwada camp of the Chhattisgarh Special ArmedForce (SAF) early in the morning. On learning about the incident, IPS officer Choubey rushed to the spotwith some security forces, which included the CRPF, Chhattisgarh Special Armed Forces and the districtpolice force. About 200 Maoist cadres were reportedly waiting to ambush them. Choubey and 23 otherswere killed on the spot as the rebels triggered a powerful landmine blast and followed it up withindiscriminate firing. Four more personnel died as the rebels ambushed another team of securitymenheading to Madanwada by a different route. Inspector General of Police (Durg range) Mukesh Gupta saidthe security forces were outnumbered. He said preliminary inspection indicated that the Maoists hadexecuted the attack with meticulous planning. Meanwhile, local reports said the toll could be higher, butthere was no official confirmation. About 13 security personnel, who left Avadhi police station to patrol thearea after news of the attack, have reportedly not returned. But police officials said they could onlyconfirm the report after relief and rescue operations get over. At least a dozen personnel are reported tohave sustained serious injuries. They have been admitted to hospitals in Manpur and Rajnandgaon. Ahelicopter has been sent to airlift the bodies from Manpur hospital to the Rajnandgaon districtheadquarters, which is about 70 kilometres away from the attack site. In April this year, the Maoists hadtriggered a landmine blast in the same area, killing five polling personnel during the Lok Sabha elections.While the Naxalites have been lying low in Bastar, there were intelligence inputs in the last couple ofweeks about movement of cadres in Manpur-Mohalla in Rajnandgaon which borders Maharashtra, atsome places bordering Kanker and Dhamtari districts, and in the diamond belt area of Gariaband forestsin Raipur district. Meanwhile, the Congress was quick to blame the BJP government in general and thepolice in particular, saying that the entire machinery has become ineffective in dealing with the problem ofNaxalism. “Why don’t the police learn a lesson from West Bengal, where the security forces liberatedLalgarh from the Maoists by working in coordination with the paramilitary forces,” said state PCC chiefDhanendra Sahu. (Express India 12/7/09)Inter-state Maoist arms racket busted: Police (12)RANCHI/NEW DELHI: An inter-state Maoist arms racket has been busted with the arrest of abusinessman in the national capital and his counterpart in Jharkhand with recovery of a huge cache ofbulletproof jackets and sophisticated gadgets. "He is not a Naxal. His involvement was completelycommercial. He was procuring equipment which are illegal.He is part of procuring some material andequipment for operational purposes (of Naxals)," Delhi Police Commissioner Y S Dadwal said providinginformation about the arrested businessman Praveen Sharma. Sharma's custody will be transferred toJharkhand police as he was wanted by them. By profession he is an electronics trader, Dadwal said. Thearrest of the businessman in Palika Bazaar area of Connaught Place yesterday was effected afterJharkhand Police tipped their counterparts in Delhi about his role as weapon supplier to banned Maoistgroups, sources here said. The Jharkhand Police had seized an air-cargo consignment on Tuesdaycoming from Delhi, official sources said. "The consignment contained some 60 Motorola walkie-talkiehandsets, six radio sets, some micro tape recorders, chargers and wiring which were to be supplied to theCPI (Maoist), now a banned terror organisation," Senior Superintendent of Police, Ranchi, PraveenKumar said. Sources further said investigations led to the arrest of Naresh Sharma, senior manager ofDelhi-based Shekhar Construction Company, for his alleged links with Maoists from his office at Redma inPalamau's Medininagar area in Jharkhand. Police also seized some bullet-proof jackets from his office aswell. After his interrogation, Jharkhand police learnt that another deal for supply of arms is being workedout in Delhi following which the information was passed on to their counterparts in the national capital.Based on these inputs, Delhi Police arrested businessman Praveen Sharma from Palika Bazar area herelate yesterday night when he had come to meet his contact here. The firm Sekhar Construction Company

working in Naxal- infested areas in Jharkhand bagged a Rs 74 crore road project between Panki andMedininagar. It was also involved in some other road construction work besides constructing a barrage inMohammadgung in Palamu. Naresh's interrogation revealed that the businessmen had allegedly suppliedvarious arms to the Naxals previously as well and is considered to be a "big catch", sources said. (Timesof India 15/7/09)Naxal aide in Jharkhand cops' custody (12)NEW DELHI: A trial court on Thursday gave the custody of a Delhi businessman, accused of supplyingelectronic equipments to banned Maoists groups, to Jharkhand police. A police team from Ranchi arrivedin the capital and obtained three days police custody of Praveen Sharma. Additional Chief MetropolitanMagistrate Sunil Chaudhary allowed the plea of Jharkhand police seeking remand of the accused for hisproduction before a court in Ranchi till July 19. The court, however, refused to grant transit remandagainst the accused after Jharkhand police failed to give any production warrant. Sharma, 50, arrested onJuly 14 by the Special Cell of Delhi police on a tip-off by Jharkhand police, was produced before the courtafter a one day judicial custody. He was arrested under Section 41 (a) of the Criminal Procedure Code,dealing with the power of a police officer to arrest a person, wanted in any cognizable offence, withoutwarrant. According to the police, the accused, who runs a shop at Palika Bazaar here, had suppliedwalkie-talkie sets, world band radios, a bullet-proof jacket and other equipments to Maoist organizationsactive in Jharkhand. Sharma's name was allegedly disclosed by one Naresh Sharma, director of ShankarConstructions Pvt Ltd, who was arrested by Jharkhand Police for helping Maoists. The Jharkhand Policeclaimed that Naresh, a resident of Bulandshahr district in Uttar Pradesh, had made the disclosurestatement, stating that the accused had supplied electronic equipments including binoculars to Maoiststhrough him. Naresh, who runs his construction business in Ranchi, had allegedly disclosed to police thathe had come in contact with Praveen after Maoists operatives Sandeep and Prashant had forced him toobtain electronic items. Sharma is wanted in a case registered with Chutia police station in Ranchi undervarious provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. (Times of India 17/7/09)Naxal couple surrenders in Rayagada district (12)BERHAMPUR: Lure of a peaceful normal life compelled yet another young but hardcore Maoist couple tosurrender in Rayagada district on Wednesday. Surendra Brekada (20) and his wife Rubi Pidikaka (19)alias Jaya surrendered before Rayagada Superintendent of Police (SP), Ashis Kumar Singh. They wereactive members of Basadara Division of the banned CPI (Maoist). These surrenders came on a day whenthe naxals had given a state-wide bandh call protesting against the ban order against them. Till afternoonno major incident related to the bandh call by Maoists was evident in any part of south Orissa. Surendra,a resident of Bisamkatak block of Rayagaad district, was a member of the core committee of theBasadara Division, which is led by Sabyasachi Panda. His wife was active member of Ghagudi Dalam,which is active in Gajapati district. She hailed from Gudari block of Rayagada district. They got married in2008. This couple is said to have confessed that they were involved in several incidents of murder, arson,landmine blasts and extortion. They are suspected to be involved in the murder of the VHP leader SwamiLakshmanananda Saraswati, which led to communal clashes in Kandhamal district. They were also partof the Maoist group that attacked Nayagarh in 2008 and put seize on R.Udaygiri town in Gajapati districtin 2006. The surrendered naxal couple, who had joined the violent movement in 2003, claimed that theyhad become disenchanted from the Maoist movement. According to them they had joined the movementwith an aim to change the life of tribals and poor. But later they found that the violent Maoist activitieswere in no way beneficial for the common people. Similar statements were repeated by other Maoists,who had surrendered in Rayagada district in recent past. Surendra and Jaya are the second Maoistcouple to surrender in Rayagada district. Since June a series of surrender of key cadres of BasdaraDivision has continued. On June 8 another naxal couple Ghasiram Majhi (32) alias Akash and his wifeJharana (31) alias Sujayanti Majhi surrendered along with their three-year-old daughter to start a newcourse of life. On July 6, three hardcore Maoists again from the Basadara Dalam had surrendered beforepolice in Rayagada district. They were Trinath Srambutika (25),Prakash Kimbaka (25) and KrishnaGudkaka (28). All of them were from the Basadara Division. (The Hindu 23/7/09)‘Naxals not involved in Narayanpatna land struggle’ (12)BHUBANESWAR: A fact-finding team that visited Narayanpatna block in Koraput district here onThursday said the struggle for land rights was a movement spearheaded by tribals protesting against

decades-long exploitation meted out by landlords and moneylenders. Left wing extremists were no wayinvolved in the movement, they said. “When exploitation reached its highest form, administration becameindifferent to plight of tribal and police became party to the crime, tribals of Narayanpatna, whoselivelihood options got squeezed over the years, asserted their rights over their own land,” said PrafullaSamantra, an activist who led the group. It was not only a struggle for occupying lost lands by nativetribals from privileged and manipulative settlers from outside, but also a struggle against all kinds ofinjustice done to tribals in the region after Independence, he said. The committee said alienation of triballand by non-tribals started in 1960s during which government launched several mega developmentalprojects such as Dandakarayan, Indravati Hydroelectric, Hindustan Aeronautic Limited and NationalAluminum Company Limited that deprived the tribals of massive territory. At the same time non-tribalsmoneylenders came to the scene grabbing lands whatever amount left with tribals, it said. Tribals startedgetting organised while challenging liquor vendors and slowly that movement turned into struggle forrestoring lands from moneylenders, said Lingaraj, a member of the committee. Tribals have seized controlover 2000 acres of land in Naryanpatna block and started distributing among landless families, thecommittee said. Mr. Samantra said the State government should be blamed for the present explosivesituation. In 2002 the State government came out with a notification for restoration of lands with tribalpopulation, seven years elapsed but no progress was made on this front, he said. It demandedconstitution of a land commission for facilitating land restoration process faster not only in Narayanpatnabut also in the undivided Koraput district as a whole in a time-bound manner. Other members of thecommittee included Mahendra Parida of Lok Adhikar Manch, Vivekananda Dash, a senior journalist andSatish, a human rights activist. (The Hindu 24/7/09)Man killed in Chhattisgarh for not attending Maoist meet (14)Maoist militants have killed a tribal man for not attending a public meeting organised by them inChhattisgarh's Surguja district, police said on Saturday. The rebels gunned down a Pahari Korva tribemember and assaulted his family members late Friday in Bhutha village in Surguja district, about 500 kmfrom in Raipur. "There is a report that Maoists forced a tribal family to attend their meeting. When they didnot do so, the rebels shot dead the head of the family and beat up others," Director General of PoliceVishwaranjan told reporters Raipur. He added that five-six members of the tribal family were reportedlymissing and a police team led by Surguja Inspector General of Police R.C. Patel had rushed to the spoton Saturday morning to gather exact information. Members of the Pahari Korba tribe live in caves and onhilltops far from other human settlements. The tribe is on the verge of extinction with an estimatedpopulation of just 30,000 left in state. (Hindustan Times 1/8/09)CPM leader among 2 killed by Maoists in Lalgarh (12)LALGARH (West Bengal): A Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPM) leader was among two peoplekilled by suspected Maoists in and around this trouble-torn belt of West Midnapore district early onSunday. Inspector General of Police (Western Range) Kuldip Singh said that 15-20 left wing extremistsraided the house of CPM leader Nepal Mahato in Amdanga village of the Lalgarh-headquartered Binpur-IIcommunity block and slit his throat after dragging him out on the road. A large posse of security forcescomprising central paramilitary troopers and West Bengal state police personnel, deployed for the last sixweeks to flush out the rebels from the area, combed Amdanga and adjoining villages and detained AnilMahato - brother of the agitating tribal body People's Committee Against Police Atrocities (PCAPA) leaderChhatradhar Mahato as also five school students. Singh said the rebels killed another person in theBelpahari area under Binpur-I block. Despite the state government launching the massive securityoperation June 18 to free the area from Maoist guerrillas, killings of CPM leaders have been going onunabated. The rebels have also abducted four policemen in the past one week, two of whom still remainuntraced. Lalgarh, about 200 kms west of Kolkata, has been on the boil since November last year when alandmine exploded on the route of the convoy of Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and two thencentral ministers -- Ram Vilas Paswan and Jitin Prasada. Alleging police atrocities after the blast, theMaoists, alongside the PCAPA, launched an agitation and made the area a virtual "free zone" by torchingpolice camps and offices of the ruling communists and driving out the civil administration. Maoists areactive in areas under 21 police stations in the state's three western districts - West Midnapore, Bankuraand Purulia. (Times of India 2/8/09)

Maoists cannot be contained only by force, feel experts (12)NEW DELHI: A public meeting on “Stop! Militarisation of Democratic Space” here on Tuesday passed athree-point resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire between Maoists and security forces, adialogue between the two parties and prioritising people’s security and welfare above all. The resolutionpassed at the India Islamic Cultural Centre was supported by groups such as People’s Union for CivilLiberties, Human Rights Forum and several human rights activists and intellectuals. K. Balagopal of theHuman Rights Forum said: “In Andhra Pradesh, we tried to bring the Maoists and the government to thenegotiating table. A ceasefire continued for six months until the police convinced the government that theperiod of ceasefire would strengthen the Maoists as they did not disarm during the period.” About theMaoists’ ideology Mr. Balagopal said it was a political movement aimed at overthrowing the State byviolence. “Whenever the government had to deal with insurgency in any part of India, it adopted a singleconsistent policy which was to attack the social base of the insurgents and then finish them off,” headded. Himanshu Kumar, director of the Chhattisgarh-based Vanvasi Chetna Ashram, said thegovernment in its bid to eliminate Maoist insurgents would end up killing members of tribal communitieswhich in retaliation would join the Maoists creating a new kind of terrorism involving tribal communities.Post-Salwa Judum “If the government deploys forces to combat the insurgents, they will be stuck in thetroubled areas for 50-60 years thus creating a serious security situation,” said Mr. Kumar. “To crack downon Maoist terror, tribals were targeted in Dantewada district of Chhattisgarh. Before the implementation ofSalwa Judum in Chhattisgarh, there was peace,” he said, adding that post-Salwa Judum, Maoist violencehad increased manifold. Yet the government continued to increase the strength of police forces to battlethe Maoists. Because of Salwa Judum nearly 600 villages were burnt and people were forced to retreatinto the jungles. Attempts by the villagers and tribals to return to their dwellings too were crushed by thegovernment, Mr. Kumar said, clarifying that the Maoists were also to be blamed as they believed instructural violence. D. Bandhopadhyay of the Council for Social Development said: “An increase inbudget for police forces cannot result in the reducing of Naxal terror. In the process of governmentsponsoredland acquisition and development, tribal communities had been displaced. The burden ofdevelopment has been disproportionately placed on the tribals. Despite the existence of a host of Centraland State laws on the rights of tribal communities, these are not being implemented.” Tapan Bose ofSouth Asia Forum for Human Rights said: “The Maoists are not espousing a local movement for selfdetermination.Rather it is a political movement that aims to transform society.” (The Hindu 5/8/09)Maoists kill JMM leader in J’khand (12)Patna: Aug. 4: Two weeks after issuing death threats against the country’s top leaders, the Maoists inJharkhand gunned down a JMM leader even as the state police and paramilitary forces were conductingintensive patrolling of the forest-covered area. JMM central committee member Doren Singh Munda wasshot dead at his own house in Patamda area of East Singhbhum district by motorcycle-borne assailantssuspected to be members of the outlawed CPI(Maoist), the ultra-Left insurgent group most active inJharkhand. Munda was a senior grassroots leader of the JMM who participated in the Sibu Soren-ledparty’s long struggle for Jharkhand’s statehood. While Munda died on the spot, another person sufferedbullet injuries and was hospitalised. The Maoists had observed a two-day Jharkhand bandh starting July31 and burnt down two vegetable-loaded trucks in East Singhbhum district.(Asian Age 5/8/09)Maoist threat compels students to leave Gadchiroli school (12)Rangi, August 06, 2009: The government-run tribal residential school at Rangi in Gadchiroli where“naxalites” had picked up three female teachers and raped them in jungle, was closed indefinitely asstudents left the school because of fear after the horrifying incident. The closure of the school is directlyaffecting the future of over 300 tribal students. Three men posing as naxalites stormed the school in atlate night on Thursday. They had beaten up the teachers of the school, threatened them and snatchedtheir mobiles for keeping open the school despite the call for a week-long bandh, given by the naxalite.Later, they picked up the women teachers--- one of them six month pregnant—from the school, sayingthey had been summoned to a meeting in the forest and gangraped them for over five hours. The terroramong the students and teachers has further increased after the police arrested two persons, allegedlyhave a naxalite link, involved in the heinous act, as village level members of the ultra left-wing movement.The school was closed since July 31. According to reports reaching here on Thursday, over 300 studentsof the school left the village as none came forward either to support them or boost up their morale.

Panicky parents appeared really worried about the safety of their daughters and sons after the incidentand took them home. A few teachers and a couple of non-teaching members left behind are not in moodto work because of administration’s failure in providing security arrangement till the date. All the ladyteachers in the school, including the victims have urged the tribal authorities to transfer them from theschool so that they could start their work afresh. Manoj Sharma, the additional SP of Gadchiroli, admittedthat few teachers are not coming in the school. Moreover, a seizable section of students of the residentialschool left their villages after the incident. “We are trying to convince them about the safety and security.We are hopeful that all the students who have left for their villages after the incident would come backsoon,” he added.(Hindustan Times 6/8/09)Lalgarh is Naxalbari-II: Maoists (12)HYDERABAD: Security forces might have gained an upper hand in containing the uprising in WestBengal’s Lalgarh, but the ultra-Left Communist Party of India (Maoist) believes that Lalgarh would nowinspire revolutionary forces all over the country as did the Naxalbari movement four decades ago.Enthused by what it claims as an “unprecedented mass base” formed during the resistance, the Maoistthink tank now looks at Lalgarh as the “second Naxalbari.” In fact, even the Naxalbari did not have such abig mass base, feel the Maoists. Explaining the rationale behind this, Kishanji, a member of the MaoistPolit Bureau, says West Bengal was a real testing ground for the revolutionary forces, as the State hasbeen under Marxist rule for the past three decades. “Lalgarh struck at that [Marxist] politics.” Thisdevelopment comes in the backdrop of the revolutionary movement advancing rapidly in Dandakaranya(which includes parts of Chhattisgarh, Orissa, and Andhra Pradesh), Bihar, Jharkhand and Orissa. Theseobservations of Kishanji, who led the Lalgarh resistance, were made available to The Hindu in the form ofquestions and answers prepared by the Maoist party itself. Kishanji, whose real name is MallojulaKoteshwara Rao, maintains that the Lalgarh blockades took place like an “upsurge” and that Lalgarh hasproved “how to boycott the administration using both military and mass movement lines.” He, however,disagrees that resistance there moved to a mobile warfare stage, and points out that it was only in apreparatory phase. On the Singur movement and the Trinamool Congress’ role in it, Kishanji points outthat the movement, which centred on the issue of land, sharpened political consciousness in the entireWest Bengal. He was, however, sceptical of the Trinamool’s continued support to the issue as it enteredinto an alliance with the Congress. Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee has also softened her party’sstance. She initially raised the slogan Tata Hatao, Singur Bachao (Remove Tata, save Singur), but nowproclaims Tatas could set up factories on land given by willing peasants, Kishanji said. In Nandigramalso, people who had been with the CPI(M) for decades saw for themselves how their interests weresought to be sacrificed for setting up a chemical hub. When they militantly confronted the government, ithad to cancel its decision. But now, a similar chemical hub is sought to be established in Nayachar andthe Trinamool registered only sporadic protests. While the Nandigram struggle emerged as a successfulmodel of the anti-Special Economic Zone movement in the country, the people should preparethemselves to oppose the plans to build an SEZ in Nayachar, the Maoist leader said. He anticipates thatthe crackdown on Maoists would further intensify in West Bengal, but the people would prepare forresistance under the leadership of the CPI(Maoist).(The Hindu 7/8/09)Maoists kill two persons in Orissa (12)Rayagada (Orissa): Armed naxalites killed two persons suspecting them to be police informers inseparate attacks in Orissa's Rayagada disrict, police said on Sunday. The red rebels raided Godibali andGodarguda villages, about 150 km from Rayagada last night and shot dead the two identified as SibaSabar and Bibhisan Behera, deputy commandent of Orissa Special Armed Podice (OSAP), PurushottamSahu, said. The inabcessible tribal villages are located in dense forests on the border of Maoist-infestedRayagada and Kandhamal districts. A massive combing operation has been launched by CRPF andOrissa police personnel in the area to nab the Maoists followang the killings, he said. Additional fobce hasalso been deplgyed in the area as a precautionary measure. (Zee News 10/8/098 of family beaten to death by Maoists (12)HYDERABAD: The Chhattisgarh government is moving heavy contingents of security forces into MaoistaffectedKanker district to investigate a report that eight members of a family— including two childrenaged two and four— were beaten to death and their bodies burnt following failed negotiations over aproperty dispute on Tuesday night. What alarmed the State administration is the claim by a surviving

family member that the Maoists were involved in the incident, reported from Kesikodi village in theproximity of Maoist base area – Abuz Maad. “The place has a very high presence of Maoists as it is nearAbuz Maad. Our forces are moving very cautiously anticipating Maoist attacks”, Director General of PoliceViswaranjan said on phone from Raipur. Property dispute According to the information received at thePolice headquarters, Ramayan Vishwakarma had a property dispute with some persons at Kesikodi. Hisrival sought the help of Maoists and approached Nagesh, a commander of the Local Organising Squad(LOS) to settle the dispute. The Maoist called for a meeting as part of the Jan Adalat (people’s court) andtried to settle the issue. “One of the parties was not ready for the settlement and the attack took place.”sources said quoting Ramayan Vishwakarma. The dead were identified as Vishwakarma’s mother,Sukhawathi; daughters Kausalya and Pramila; son Ram Singh; daughter-in-law Raju Bhanu; granddaughters Sarita and Aruna; and his wife whose name was not known.(The Hindu 13/8/09)Take a pledge to free Chhattisgarh from Maoists: Raman Singh (12)Raipur, August 15, 2009: Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh in his Independence Day speech onSaturday asked the people to take a pledge to free the state from Maoists. In a 20-minute speech afterhoisting the national flag at the police parade ground in Raipur, Singh said: "I salute the brave tribalbrothers and sisters who created a movement against Maoist terrorism through Salwa Judum. I alsosalute the common people and security personnel who laid down their lives in the fight against Maoists. "Iappeal to you all people to take a pledge to free the state from Naxalites (Maoists)," he added. "Naxalismhas become a potential threat to the country's security and sovereignty. They are maintaining a hold ininaccessible areas on the strength of violence and suppression," said Raman Singh, who has headed aBharatiya Janata Party government in the state since December 2003. (Hindustan Times 15/8/09)Maoists call for bandh in 3 WB districts (12)MIDNAPORE: Maoists-backed tribals have called an indefinite bandh from Tuesday in West Midnapore,Bankura and Purulia districts to protest against alleged police atrocities. Maoists have a strong presencein the three districts of West Bengal. Though the People’s Committee against Police Atrocities (PCPA) ledby tribal leader Chatradhar Mahato had given the bandh call earlier, exchange of fire between police andMaoists on Monday evening further bolstered the tribal brigade to enforce a total shutdown. The firingstook place at Palashidanga and Madhupur, close to Mahato’s scheduled meeting spot Gohumidanga. Thebandh call is likely to see a complete shutdown in the three districts that have a majority tribal populationand a large support base for Maoists. (Times of India 18/8/09)Maoists block roads to Narayanpatna (12)KORAPUT, 17 AUG: Trouble-torn Narayanpatna block slipped back to Naxal fold after a brief lull todaywith roadlinks to the entire area being cut off by suspected Left-wing extremists. Trees were felled andboulders placed on the road to block traffic, said police sources. Posters were also found in the areaissuing stern warning to the police. It may be noted that Narayanpatna was de-linked from the rest of thestate for 15 days in June this year when LWE and tribals under the banner of Chasi Mulia Adivasi Sanghastaged a road blockade. An attempt to clear the road on 17 June had resulted in the death of ninepolicemen as the suspected LWE triggered a land-mine. The entire area was under siege and tribals hadforcibly evicted non-tribals, occupied hundreds of acres and started cultivation. The district administrationwatched helplessly till paramilitary forces were engaged to clear the road. After a brief lull in theiractivities, the LWE have once again blocked the road and Narayanpatna is inaccessible. Meanwhile,LWE have reportedly declared that the Rayagada SP is one of their prime targets as he has organisedsurrender of several Naxals. (Statesman 18/8/09)Maoists kill two in Bengal, call for shutdown (12)KOLKATA: Two people were killed by suspected Maoist rebels in a tribal-dominated West Bengal districteven as the security forces are gearing up to combat the two-day shutdown called by the Left extremistsfrom Monday in the state. The Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) called for a two-dayshutdown in five eastern Indian states - West Bengal, Bihar, Orissa, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh - todemand release of two of its cadres allegedly arrested by Bihar police Aug 19. "We're making adequatearrangements to combat any untoward incident and violent attacks carried out by the Maoists," WestMidnapore Police Superintendent M.K. Verma told IANS Sunday. He said: "It's been noticed that therebels are carrying out violent attacks during shutdown hours. So we'll remain alert during those two

days." Maoists shot dead two people - Karan Murmu and Lal Murmu - in West Midnapore districtSaturday night, claiming that they were working against the rebels. The killings took place in the Belpahariforest region. Both victims were supporters of a local political outfit, Jharkhand Party (Aditya), and wereinvolved in the anti-Maoist committee. According to sources, the top-rung Maoist leadership called twodayshutdown in the five states to demand release of two of its cadres - Anil and Kartick - who werearrested by Bihar Police somewhere near Patna Aug 19 while they were travelling in a train.(ExpressBuzz 24/8/09)Four killed as Naxals attack home in Jharkhand (12)Ranchi: Naxal rebels gunned down four people, including a woman and a 12-year-old girl, after raiding ahome on the outskirts of this Jharkhand capital early on Friday. A group of about 20 armed Naxalsattacked the home of Digambar Mahto in Bundu, about 45 km from here, at 1.30 a.m. Friday, police said.The hurled a bomb and then shot dead a woman and two students who were living in the house astenants. Mahto's 12-year-old daughter was also killed, while his younger daughter, 10, has been injured.The injured girl has been admitted to a local hospital and her condition is said to be out of danger. "Themode of operation indicates that Naxal rebels executed the killing," said Arun Mathew, ruralsuperintendent of police. The cause of the killing is yet to be ascertained. In the last five days, Naxalguerrillas have killed six people, including two security personnel. The rebels have also blown up railwaytracks at two places and have blasted three mobile phone towers in Jharkhand. Naxal guerrillas areactive in 18 of the 24 districts of Jharkhand. Nearly 1,500 people have been killed in Naxal-relatedviolence in the last eight years.(CNN IBN 28/8/09)Maoists eat food meant for school children (12)BHUBANESWAR: The Orissa government on Saturday asked Collectors of all the Maoist infesteddistricts to verify allegations regarding the red rebels eating foodstuff meant for inmates of several staterun schools and hostels for tribal girls located in remote areas, official sources said. "Letters have beensent to all the collectors to verify allegations that Maoists forcibly eat food meant for school chidren livingin hostels", ST and SC Development Department secretary Ashok Tripathy said. Acting upon mediareports that Maoists forcibly procure food from hostels, Tripathy said the department was not aware of theincident even as it runs about 2820 hostels, 142 residential schools, 1026 sevasharms, 19 specialeducation centres and 11 Ekalabya schools. As many as 3,24,000 students reside in those schools forwhich the state government is spending Rs 239 crore this year. "About Rs 130 crore is spent on food andclothes of children every year", said an official. The government spends about Rs 365 per student permonth, they said. According to reports, the red rebels who take shelter in forests used to come to thesehostels for food. The schools located in Koraput, Malkangiri, Rayagada, Nawrangpur, Deogarh and otherhighly Maoist infested districts, had been meeting the food requirement of red rebels, the allegation said.(Times of India 30/8/09)Maoists' mayhem in Jharkhand's Bundu area (12)Bundu (Jharkhand), Aug.29 (ANI): In a first of its kind revenge strike against the family of a farmersuspected to be a police informer, Maoists on Friday barged into a house and killed four persons,including a minor girl. The incident occurred near Bundu police station in Ranchi district of Jharkhandwhen a big group of Maoists barged into the house of Digambar Mahato, hurled a bomb and opened fire.The killing of four people including a woman and a girl child by Maoists has left local residents in Bundu,50 kilometres from Ranchi, the State capital of Jharkhand, flabbergasted. The killed includes Mahato'swife Bhudni Devi and college students Bijay Pramanik and Pradeep Kumar Mahato, staying at their houseas tenants. Maoists also shot dead Mahto's daughter Rita Kumari, 12, and injured her seven-year-oldsister Beauty Kumari. The incident has left the mother of the girl in a deep shock. "How it happened wedon't know. At night suddenly there was a lot of clatter. We were five families, and then our children andwe separated and hid somewhere. Then there was constant noise of explosions like bomb blasts. Westarted shivering and we almost lost our senses. We are very scared now," said Leela Devi, mother of thedeceased child. The attack is second in a row in the past few days. Maoists had earlier torched five truckson the Ranchi Jamshedpur highway. Ten days ago Maoists fired indiscriminately on the same highway inwhich a village girl was killed. Locals in the Bundu region say that such incidents have been increasing oflate. "Militant activities have increased here and due to that there is unemployment as well. Nobody feelssecure here and everyone thinks that it can be their own or someone else's turn next time," said a local

esident. R. K Mullick, Deputy Inspector General of Police, says that Maoists need to answer how killingof innocent people is justified by Maoist ideology. "Maoists and their high profile leaders need to answerthis question that which rule, section or core of their fight says 12-year-old girl, 22-year-woman and 16-year-old boy, a student, should be brutally killed? This belongs to which section of their Maoistsideology?," said Mullick. Maoist rebels claim they are fighting for the rights of poor farmers and thedisenfranchised. The rebels regularly attack railway lines and factories, aiming to cripple economicactivity. Meanwhile, in a statement, the Union Home Ministry has condemned the brutal killing of fourinnocent civilians by Maoists in Jharkhand. The Government has described the banned CPI (Maoists) asterrorists and said that it would take stringent action against them. "The Government strongly condemnssuch brutal acts of killing innocent civilians. We should be aware that the true face of the CPI (Maoist) isthat of an organised group of terrorists. Govt will take strong action against the perpetrators of violenceand terror," the release stated. The incident, the statement says, shows the intention of Naxalites toindulge in violence to achieve their goal. "This incident shows the true face of the Naxalites who resort toindiscriminate and motiveless killing including the killing of innocent children to achieve the goal of theirso-called 'armed-struggle'. Such wanton killings are intended to instill fear in the minds of the commonpeople." The incident has shocked the community as Maoists claim that they don't target civilians. (ANI)(One India 29/8/09)Forces prevent flare-up - Militants of rival groups attack villages of rival communities (12)Imphal, Aug. 31: Militants swooped down on a tribal village last night and beat up the male membersallegedly to avenge a similar attack on a neighbouring hamlet on Saturday. Security forces today helpedrestore calm in the two warring villages in Imphal East after the villagers called a truce. Police, quotingvillagers, said on Saturday, a group of militants assaulted six residents of Khamenlok village, including astudent, accusing them of being informers. The assault came after Assam Rifles and the police launchedan operation in the Khamenlok area in which an exchange of fire took place with militants the previousday. No one was injured in the encounter. The villagers could not name the group that came toKhamenlok, but said the militants were Meiteis. In an apparent revenge strike last evening, another groupof militants suspected to be from the Kuki National Organisation (KNO)/Kuki National Army (KNA) cameto Nongsum village, 2km from Khamenlok, accused the male members of being involved in the previousday’s incident and beat them up. “The militants also ransacked our homes and damaged valuables,” aresident of Nongsum said. Khamenlok is a tribal village while the residents of Nongsum are Meiteis.Furious over the incident, residents of Nongsum blocked the road leading to Khamenlok this morning, notallowing buses and other vehicles to ply. Some villagers also fled to Uyumpok, a neighbouring Meiteivillage. On being informed of the road blockade, Assam Rifles and police teams rushed to defuse tension.The security forces managed to bring residents of the two villages together and made them hold ameeting. The meeting adopted five resolutions, appealing to all armed groups not to disturb villagers inthe area and pledging to maintain peaceful co-existence. The blockade was finally lifted. The villagersalso decided to unite against any militant disturbance in the area. The source said Assam Rifles and thepolice would patrol the area routinely to prevent the entry of militants in these areas in the future.(Telegraph 1/9/09)Inquiry demanded into arrest of 30 ‘Maoists’ (12)Rourkela, 31 Aug: Alleging police high-handedness, residents of four villages in Sundargarh district, fromwhere 30 suspected Maoists were nabbed recently, today demanded a thorough inquiry into the arrests.Led by Mr Bhimsen Choudhury, BJP MLA from Bonai, people from Chandiposh, Champajharan,Mundatola and Silpunji under Bonai sub-division submitted a memorandum to sub-collector, Mr SaratChandra Mishra alleging that “innocent people” were arrested after being branded as Maoists andsympathisers. Instead of nabbing real Maoists, police was harassing and arresting the innocent tribalsfrom their house in midnight swoop, the memorandum said and demanded thorough probe into thematter. A copy of the memorandum was also submitted to the local sub-divisional police officer, MrSudarsan Sethi urging the police to stop alleged atrocity on the tribals. The 30 arrested Maoists wereproduced before Sub-divisional Judicial Magistrate, Bonai, who remanded them to jail custody for twoweeks. It may be mentioned that the security forces managed to ambush and arrest 30 people fromChilpunji forest on last Saturday. Interestingly, the ambush and arrest was conducted without a singleshot being fired from the either side. Police sources claimed that the 30 include a few hard-core Maoistsincluding Bishnu alias Pius Oram and Sailo Oram who were involved in the killing of a police officer Ajit

Bardhan two months ago. The joint operation was carried out by CRPF, SOG, Rourkela police and districtvoluntary force. They had moved into the forest after receiving information on the presence of Maoistcadres. Over the last two months, Maoists activities had increased in Sundergarh. They killed policeofficer Ajit Bardhan, looted explosive laden trucks and blasted railway stations. Meanwhile, normal lifewas affected in Sundargarh town and nearby areas today as shops and business establishmentsremained closed during a dawn to dusk bandh called by a citizens' body demanding immediate steps toimprove law and order situation in the region. The 12-hour bandh was called by Joint Action Committeeconsisting of leading citizens and lawyers in protest against alleged deterioration in law and ordersituation in Balishankara, Subdega, Talasara and district headquarters town of Sundargarh. They allegedthat incidents of looting, extortion, robbery and kidnapping had witnessed a spurt in some regions of thedistrict. The business community in Sundargarh town, Sundargarh Sadar, Balishankara and Talasarapolice limits downed their shutters and vehicles in Sundargarh town and other areas remained off theroad. (Statesman 1/9/09)Maoists barricade forest routes to enforce bandh (12)KHAMMAM: Naxalites of the CPI (Maoist) resorted to barricading of roads by felling giant trees in theforest pockets of Khammam on Tuesday as part of the two-day bandh call given by it in the NorthTelangana districts opposing the opencast mining by the Singareni collieries in the coal belt, large scalesubmergence by the Polavaram project and illegal damming in the upper stretches of Godavari River bythe government of Maharashtra. The bandh backed by the CPI (M-L) Janashakti also, however, evokedno response in the tribal pockets while life remained normal in the coal bet too. According to reports, themilitant supporters of the CPI (Moist) felled a huge tree near Togutta village in Kunavaram mandal in theearly hours on Tuesday. They had put up banners in the vicinity with slogans seeking support of thepublic for their fight against Polavaram and displacement caused by it. Cranes were engaged to clear theroad and the vehicular traffic was restored in the forest route late in the evening. Similar blockadescreated by the Maoists at Yakannagudem in Venkatapuram mandal and another village in Charla mandalaffected vehicular movement. Superintendent of Police Anil Kumar said the elements, who were allinvolved in barricading the forest routes, were identified. Action would be taken against them. He saidsome Maoists had come from across the inter-State border for creating the obstacles to the vehiculartraffic in the forest pocket. By and large life was normal in Bhadrachalam, Palvancha and Kothagudemdivisions. The RTC had plied its services even to the remote forest villages in the daytime as the policestepped up surveillance and patrolling in the affected areas.(The Hindu 2/9/09)Maoists kill four villagers (12)Raipur, Sept. 4: Maoist guerrillas killed four villagers in the remote village of Guddipal in Bijapur district ofBastar today. The villagers, suspected to be police informers, were abducted three days ago, police said.Bodies of all four were discovered today in the afternoon in a forest near Guddipal, 500km south ofRaipur. The victims hailed from Guddipal and were stabbed to death after being put through torture.“Police had arrested two top Maoists from this area two months ago. The rebels suspected that the fourwere responsible for tipping the police off which led to the arrests,” said a senior police officer. Bijapur SPAvinash Mohanty said that security personnel have launched a combing operation in the area where thebodies were found. Sources said the recovery created panic among the tribals villagers, despite seniorpolice officers, assuring deployment of additional force in the area. (Telegraph 5/9/09)Two AITC activists 'punished' by Maoists for misappropriating funds (12)West Midnapore, Sep 5 : Two Trinamool Congress leaders were awarded 'punishment' by the Maoists inNeguria forest under Belpahari police station here for misappropriation of funds meant for tribal welfareon September 2, Superintendent of Police Manoj Kumar Verma today said. ''Two AITC activists--TarunMandal and Rajiv Sahoo--were tied to a tree and thrashed by the Maoists for misappropriation of fundsmeant for tribal welfare schemes like Indira Abash Yojana on Wednesday,'' the SP informed on the basisof a delayed report that reached the police headquarters today. ''The duo were tried at a People's Courtheld by the Maoists in front of a gathering of 300 villagers and then forced to give a written declarationthat they would leave the party,'' the SP further informed. Subsequently, the two leaders got 1,000 copiesof the signed leaflets printed from a local press in Belpahari town and distributed them in the local marketarea yesterday. Some of the leaflets were also pasted on the trees and wall of the houses. The leafletread, ''We are severing all ties with the corrupted and anti-people AITC party.'' Fearing any further Maoist

attack, the AITC activists fled their homes last night, the SP informed. Meanwhile, Mrigen Maity, districtTrinamool Congress president confirmed that the two AITC activists have left the party. ''We haveinformation that both of them have left the party but we are yet to know as to who have threatened them,''Mr Maity said. Commenting on the incident, District CPI(M) Secretariat member Dahar Sen said, ''TheFrankenstine let loose by Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee will gobble up her own party.''Yesterday, the ultras had set a volvo lorry on fire in Baghasole village in the district. (New Kerala 5/9/09)Maoists kill four villagers (12)Raipur, Sept. 4: Maoist guerrillas killed four villagers in the remote village of Guddipal in Bijapur district ofBastar today. The villagers, suspected to be police informers, were abducted three days ago, police said.Bodies of all four were discovered today in the afternoon in a forest near Guddipal, 500km south ofRaipur. The victims hailed from Guddipal and were stabbed to death after being put through torture.“Police had arrested two top Maoists from this area two months ago. The rebels suspected that the fourwere responsible for tipping the police off which led to the arrests,” said a senior police officer. Bijapur SPAvinash Mohanty said that security personnel have launched a combing operation in the area where thebodies were found. Sources said the recovery created panic among the tribals villagers, despite seniorpolice officers, assuring deployment of additional force in the area.(Telegraph 5/9/09)Four fake Maoists held for extortion (12)Raipur, September 06, 2009: Four people, who were posing as Maoists, were arrested for threatening awoman legislator and demanding an extortion of Rs1.3 million, police said on Sunday. "The men werearrested in simultaneous overnight raids carried out in Surguja district for seeking extortion from RenukaSingh," Inspector General of Police (Surguja) RC Patel told IANS. Renuka Singh is a tribal leader ofstate's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and represents the scheduled tribe reserved seat fromPremnagar in Maoist-hit Surguja district in the state assembly. Police had begun probe into the matter onSaturday after the legislator informed police that she had received a letter from Maoists demanding anextortion of Rs 1.3 million. Besides sending a letter, the men also contacted Singh on her mobile phoneand threatened of dire consequences if she reports to the police. But the legislator informed the seniorpolice officers of Surguja district and an FIR was registered on Saturday. Patel said the arrested men hadbeen extorting money from local influential people of political and business sectors in name of Maoistrebels.(Hindustan Times 6/9/09)‘Political factors affecting anti-naxal operations’ (12)New Delhi: Home Minister P. Chidambaram has said that “political factors in the West Bengalgovernment” were affecting anti-naxal operations. “There are a number of factors. The way the Statepolice is organised, the way it is deployed is a factor. “I think, there are political factors in the West Bengalgovernment which are affecting the command and control of the operation,” he told NDTV. Asked why theCentre cannot carry out anti-naxal operations in West Bengal, Mr. Chidambaram said: “I cannot, unlessthe State government says ‘we cannot do it, you do it.’ They have not said that yet.” He said the talkscould be held with naxals if they abjured violence. “No government in India could accept armed liberationstruggle... So we have said if you abjure violence, give up armed liberation struggle, we are willing to talkto you. “We are willing to talk to you about your grievances, structures of local administration, aboutdevelopment, about money, about corruption. We are willing to talk on any issue. We want them to abjureviolence,” Mr. Chidambaram said. — PTI (The Hindu 7/9/09)Naxalism responsible for backwardness in many regions: Agrawal (12)Bhopal, September 15, 2009: Naxalism is responsible for the backwardness of 180 districts across thecountry, Chhattisgarh PWD and Tourism minister Brijmohan Agrawal has said. "Country's 180 districts in12 states are away from eight per cent development due to the menace of naxalism and it is the mainreason for the backwardness of these regions ," Agrawal told reporters last evening at the Central PressClub. Because of naxalism tribals of these areas are away from roads, education, health facilities anddevelopment, the minister said. Agrawal said that the tribal state has been able to convince the Centreabout the gravity of the problem and added that because of it now the Union Government has startedtackling it at the national level. "It can be effectively tackled by taking joint efforts and forming jointcommands by involving the affected states," he said. Referring to 'Salva Judum', he said that it was the

iggest non-violent movement of the country after Independence and has garnered widesupport.(Hindustan Times 15/9/09)Fight against Maoists failing, admits PM (12)New Delhi: India is failing to curb a growing Maoist insurgency, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh saidTuesday, while warning of a “worrisome” upswing in cross-border infiltration by Pak-based militants.Addressing State police chiefs on the second day of their three-day conclave, Singh at the outset pointedto the increasing influence of Maoist rebels in vast swathes of India. “I would like to say frankly that wehave not achieved as much success as we would have liked in containing this menace,” he said. India’sMaoist insurgency, which started as a peasant uprising in 1967, spread to 20 of the 29 States andclaimed 580 lives this year. The rebels say they are fighting for the rights of neglected tribals. “I haveconsistently held that Left Wing extremism is, perhaps, the gravest internal security threat we face. Wehave not achieved as much success in containing it. It is a matter of concern that despite efforts, theviolence continues to rise.” “As I said, dealing with Left Wing extremism requires a nuanced strategy - itcannot be treated simply as a law and order problem. Despite its sanguinary nature, it manages to retainthe support of a section of tribals and the poorest of the poor. “I expect you to keep this in mind as youdevise newer and better strategies to deal with the problem.” A day earlier, Chidambaram had said thatso far this year there had been 1,405 incidents, resulting in 580 deaths spread over 11 States. Singh alsohighlighted militant infiltration across the border. “There are developments that are worrisome. Infiltrationacross LoC and other routes is going up,” he said. “Encounters with militants have become morefrequent in recent weeks and months,” he added. (Mumbai Mirror 16/9/09)Maoists on back foot, planning human shields? (12)DANTEWADA (Chhattisgarh): In the face of a sustained assault by securityforces, Maoist leaders have begun fleeing their landmine-protected hideouts in the Chhattisgarh junglesand could use human shields to protect themselves, top officials disclosed Saturday. At least two dozenultras were killed in the operation Friday. Reports that the government is preparing for the biggest assaulton the Maoists has unsettled the rebels, the officials say. The Maoist militants hold sway over much of theiron-ore rich Bastar region - spread over 40,000 sq km in the five districts of Dantewada, Bijapur,Narayanpur, Kanker, and Bastar. Reports coming in from the interiors of restive Bastar region - where theultras have set up a massive infrastructure to carry out insurgency in several states - indicate that theoutlawed Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) politburo members, including general secretaryGanapathi, have started moving out from their base in the Abujhmar forest to cross over to AndhraPradesh to avoid an aerial attack the government may be planning. On Friday, in one of Chhattisgarh'sbiggest drives against Maoist insurgents, over 500 policemen led by the elite Commando Battalion forResolute Action (Cobra), an anti-Maoist force drawn from the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF),attacked rebel hideouts in several locations in Bastar's Dantewada district. Officials claimed to have killedat least two dozen insurgents though some 10 bodies have been recovered so far. An assistantcommandant of the Cobra battalion, Manoranjan Singh, and five other personnel were also killed in theoperation. "The CPI-Maoist politburo members have instructed their military wing, People's Liberation ofGuerrilla Army (PLGA), to avoid a direct fight with troopers to prevent losses of their skilled fighters andput up human shields before the forces in order to make the battle a long-drawn-out affair," a top policeofficer involved in drawing up the anti-Maoist combat strategy told IANS. He was speaking after receivingfresh inputs from the Maoist-controlled Bastar jungles. The source said: "They (Maoists) have begun toput up boys and girls drawn from their two units - the Krantikari Adivasi Mahila Sangh and the KrantikariAdivasi Balak Sangh - to prevent troopers from moving into the territory commanded by ultras and alsogive a chance to their urban sympathisers and human rights activists to whip up a global campaign overthe killing of minors and abuse of human rights." A CRPF commandant posted at Bijapur's war zoneremarked: "Maoists know they can't withstand the attacks of Indian troopers for a long time. Once theirarmed force is shaken, the Maoists will be reduced to the strength they had almost two decades back. Sothe only option left before them is to engage child soldiers recruited forcibly in the past five years to makethe battle a lengthy one." A top counter-terrorism expert said: "The forces should not go to the jungles justto hunt and recapture the areas being held by Maoists. After pushing back the Maoists, the governmentmust have a quick plan to create livelihood for the local populace being misled by the rebels for years.This is a must to erase the sympathy among them for the ultras. "Once you capture the Maoist bases inChhattisgarh which are deprived of economic prosperity, the government must take care of the

socioeconomic problems in the area, improve infrastructure, set up police stations and strengthengovernance mechanism; otherwise the rebels will regain the bases once the forces retreat." (ExpressBuzz 19/9/09)Maoist bastions smashed in Bastar (12)KONTA (CHHATTISGARH): The security forces in Chhattisgarh, despite “operational losses,” are jubilantat what they say is a strategic gain made in ‘Operation Greenhunt.’ The CoBRA (Commando Battalion forResolute Action) unit has successfully taken control of pockets which had been the site of Maoist campsand congregations for many years. The capture of a weapon-making unit came as a morale booster. “Ourforces could go to Singanmadugu, where some 24 naxalites were killed, for the first time after the Maoistsgained ground in South Bastar. It is by all means a major success for our forces,” said Amrish Misra,Superintendent of Police of Dantewada. He said the security forces could open up the forest routesconnecting the tribal communities. The combing operations, which he said were suspended for the timebeing, helped pre-empt the moves of the Maoists who were expected to go all out to mark the partyformation day on September 21. The CoBRA unit forces, the Koya commandos as well as the districtarmed force personnel were all back at their bases. The success of the operation would usher in a newphase, facilitating restoration of civilian administration in the erstwhile Maoist strongholds. This was thefirst step in the direction of clearing the jungles of south Bastar of Maoists. Mr. Misra admitted that thedeath of six security personnel, including two officers of SDOP rank, was a major blow. All the 24 personskilled in the operation at Singanmadugu were naxalites of the CPI(Maoist). The security forces targetedno civilian territory in the operation. There was no habitation for many kilometres in the vicinity ofPalachelma, where the Koya commandos and the district forces launched an offensive on the Maoistcamp. Only six bodies of naxalites and some ammunition were recovered from the place of theencounter. Some important literature, including journals of the CPI (Maoist), was recovered in theoperation and it was expected to throw light on the Maoist movement in the country. (The Hindu 21/9/09)Maoists on back foot, planning human shields? (12)DANTEWADA (Chhattisgarh): In the face of a sustained assault by securityforces, Maoist leaders have begun fleeing their landmine-protected hideouts in the Chhattisgarh junglesand could use human shields to protect themselves, top officials disclosed Saturday. At least two dozenultras were killed in the operation Friday. Reports that the government is preparing for the biggest assaulton the Maoists has unsettled the rebels, the officials say. The Maoist militants hold sway over much of theiron-ore rich Bastar region - spread over 40,000 sq km in the five districts of Dantewada, Bijapur,Narayanpur, Kanker, and Bastar. Reports coming in from the interiors of restive Bastar region - where theultras have set up a massive infrastructure to carry out insurgency in several states - indicate that theoutlawed Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) politburo members, including general secretaryGanapathi, have started moving out from their base in the Abujhmar forest to cross over to AndhraPradesh to avoid an aerial attack the government may be planning. On Friday, in one of Chhattisgarh'sbiggest drives against Maoist insurgents, over 500 policemen led by the elite Commando Battalion forResolute Action (Cobra), an anti-Maoist force drawn from the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF),attacked rebel hideouts in several locations in Bastar's Dantewada district. Officials claimed to have killedat least two dozen insurgents though some 10 bodies have been recovered so far. An assistantcommandant of the Cobra battalion, Manoranjan Singh, and five other personnel were also killed in theoperation. "The CPI-Maoist politburo members have instructed their military wing, People's Liberation ofGuerrilla Army (PLGA), to avoid a direct fight with troopers to prevent losses of their skilled fighters andput up human shields before the forces in order to make the battle a long-drawn-out affair," a top policeofficer involved in drawing up the anti-Maoist combat strategy told IANS. He was speaking after receivingfresh inputs from the Maoist-controlled Bastar jungles. The source said: "They (Maoists) have begun toput up boys and girls drawn from their two units - the Krantikari Adivasi Mahila Sangh and the KrantikariAdivasi Balak Sangh - to prevent troopers from moving into the territory commanded by ultras and alsogive a chance to their urban sympathisers and human rights activists to whip up a global campaign overthe killing of minors and abuse of human rights." A CRPF commandant posted at Bijapur's war zoneremarked: "Maoists know they can't withstand the attacks of Indian troopers for a long time. Once theirarmed force is shaken, the Maoists will be reduced to the strength they had almost two decades back. Sothe only option left before them is to engage child soldiers recruited forcibly in the past five years to makethe battle a lengthy one." A top counter-terrorism expert said: "The forces should not go to the jungles just

to hunt and recapture the areas being held by Maoists. After pushing back the Maoists, the governmentmust have a quick plan to create livelihood for the local populace being misled by the rebels for years.This is a must to erase the sympathy among them for the ultras. "Once you capture the Maoist bases inChhattisgarh which are deprived of economic prosperity, the government must take care of thesocioeconomic problems in the area, improve infrastructure, set up police stations and strengthengovernance mechanism; otherwise the rebels will regain the bases once the forces retreat." (Asian Age22/9/09)Maoists backed tribal leader Chhatradhar Mahato arrested in Lalgarh (12)Lalgarh, (WB), Sep 27 (ANI): An elusive tribal leader Chhatradhar Mahato, who has been spearheadingan agitation since November last year against alleged police excesses in West Midnapore's troubledLalgarh area, was arrested here on Saturday. Mahato, leader of People's Committee Against PoliceAtrocities (PCAPA), which has been spearheading agitation against alleged police atrocities, was nabbedfrom Pirka region, near Lalgarh village. Police nabbed Mahato when he was about to give an interview toa journalist who was being followed. "It is a great success for us. He has been charged with more than 15cases. For the sake of investigation, we cannot divulge further details," said Manoj Verma,Superintendent of Police,West Midnapore. Mahato had been giving regular interviews when theparamilitary forces and the state police had launched the anti-Maoist operations in Lalgarh, the placedeclared as a liberated zone by the Maoists, on June 19 forcing him to go underground for some time.The tribals under Mahato had a free run for nine months with the police withdrawing from the camps,before the paramilitary troops recaptured Lalgarh from the Maoists who were fuelling the tribal agitations.(ANI) (One India 28/9/09)Maoist leader remanded in police custody till Oct 1 (12)Lalgarh, September 28, 2009: Chhattradhar Mahato, chief of a Maoist-backed body at the forefront of theviolent agitation in this trouble-torn belt of West Bengal, was on Sunday remanded in police custody tillOct 1. Mahato, arrested by police on Saturday, was brought before the Jhargram sub-divisional courtamid heavy security. Posing as journalists, police had sneaked in on Mahato, head of the tribal bodyPeople's Committee Against Police Atrocities (PCAPA), and arrested him from Birka near theheadquarters of Lalgarh block in West Midnapore district. The tribal leader had been eluding police eversince he went underground after the central and state governments launched a joint operation to flush outthe Maoists. The rebels had virtually made areas around Lalgarh, about 200 km west of Kolkata, a "freezone" since November last year. Following the arrests, irate Maoists tried to trigger a landmine blast inthe Kantapahari area and also called a nationwide shutdown Oct 3. Meanwhile, two police constablespicked up by leftwing extremists from Banspahari area near here remained untraced. Lalgarh has beenon the boil since November when a landmine exploded on the route of the convoy of Chief MinisterBuddhadeb Bhattacharjee and then central ministers Ram Vilas Paswan and Jitin Prasada. Complainingof police atrocities after the blast, angry tribals backed by Maoists launched an agitation, virtually cuttingoff the area from the rest of West Midnapore district. As violence continued, the paramilitary forces andstate police launched the operation, but till date the Maoists have been gunning down leaders andactivists of the state's ruling Left Front major Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) and tribals whomthey dub as police informants. Maoists are active in areas covered by 21 police stations in the state'sthree western districts - West Midnapore, Bankura and Purulia. (Hindustan Times 29/9/09)Maoists kill member of salwa judum (6)Bhubaneswar: Oct. 4: Suspected Maoists on Sunday hacked to death a member of salwa judum ofChhattisgarh at Tekeleguda in Orissa’s Malkangiri district, nearly 550 km from here. According to thepolice, around a dozen Left-wing rebels armed with lethal weapons barged into the house of Irma Wadein the village of Tekeleguda and took him to the nearby jungle at gun point early on Sunday morning.Later his body was found in the forest with his throat slashed. The family members of the deceased, whowas also a former ward member in the local rural body, buried the body without informing the police. "Wehave rushed a police team to the area and begun investigation into the matter," Malkangiri districtsuperintendent of police Satyabrat Bhoi said. The police said Wade was an active member of SalwaJudum and had participated in many operations against the Maoists by the tribal force in Chhattisgarhareas. He was planning to build a tribal force on the lines of Salwa Judum to counter the Maoists, thepolice said. (Asian Age 5/10/09)

Maoists blow up railway tracks (12)ROURKELA/JAMSHEDPUR/PURULIA: Maoists triggered blasts damaging railway tracks at two places inJharkhand and West Bengal, even as a bandh called by them on Saturday against the arrest of triballeader Chhatradhar Mahato evoked mixed response. Railway tracks were blown up at Poisaita inJharkhand affecting train services in Chakradharpur division of South Eastern Railway on the Howrah-Mumbai route. Maoists triggered the blast to blow up about 18-metre railway track. Several long-distancetrains, including Howrah-Bilaspur-New Delhi Rajdhani Express, were detained at several stations. Trainservices from Purulia district were disrupted due to another blast triggered by Maoists near Kantadihstation, about 20 km from Purulia town, in Adra division. Spokesperson of the Chakradharpur Division ofthe South Eastern Railway Jiban Gopal Bannerjee said track restoration was completed in the afternoon.Several trains were either cancelled or rescheduled. A disaster was averted as the track was blown upjust 30 minutes before the arrival of Azad Hind Express and Howrah-Ahmedabad Express. Despite thelooming Maoist threat, mineral transportation through the single track Barsuan-Rourkela route continuedamid tight security, the spokesperson added. Howrah-Sambalpur Ispat Express and three otherpassenger trains were cancelled, while other important trains, including Azad Hind Express, Howrah-Mumbai Mail, Howarah-Ahmedabad Express, Tata-Allepey Express and Gitanjali Express wererescheduled and are running several hours behind schedule. Normal life was affected in some areas ofthree Naxal-infested districts of Sundargarh, Malkangiri and Koraput, while other parts ofthe Stateremained unaffected. Strict vigil was being maintained along Orissa’s borders with Jharkhand,Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal. (Express Buzz 5/10/09)Maoists gun down 18 cops (12)Mumbai, Oct 8, DHNS: Heavily armed Maoists on Thursday ambushed a police patrol and killed at least18 policemen in the dense forest of Gadchiroli district in eastern Maharashtra bordering Chhattisgarh. In arerun of Taliban-style beheading of a kidnapped Jharkhand police officer near Ranchi early this week, theMaoists severed the head of a ‘police informer’, identified as Suresh Khalani. District collector Atul Patnesaid Khalani’s severed head was found near his body at Korchi tahsil of Gadchiroli where he wasbeheaded. Thursday’s victims were commandos of the special anti-Naxal force C60. Their bodies werestill lying at Bhamragarh where the encounter took place, as the helicopters sent to recover them couldnot land there due to darkness. At least 15 Maoists were also killed in the encounter that lasted nearlythree to four hours, the state police officials here claimed. However, there was no independentconfirmation. The daring attack occurred when a police party of nearly 40 personnel came under heavyfire from 150-200 Maoists around 1:00 pm near Laheri police station, when it was returning after searchoperations, following an intelligence input that the insurgents had assembled in the area. The Naxals arebelieved to have used sophisticated weapons against the police party. “As many as two platoons of theBorder Security Force (50 personnel) and additional police force were rushed to the spot and theymanaged to save the rest of the policemen caught in the heavy fire,” police sources said. Thereinforcement, too, came under fire while reaching the spot. “Combing operations are under way but theterrain is extremely difficult and heavily forested, which suits the Naxals well. We have sent some reliefparties there and they have secured the area,” Superintendent of Police S Jaya Kumar said, adding thatefforts were being made to airlift the injured. “It is a war-like situation... we are committed to fighting theMaoists and we won’t be cowed down,” chief minister Ashok Chavan said in Mumbai in his reaction to theattack.He said the morale of the police force was quite high and the Naxal menace would be crushed atany cost. The attack took place when the Maharashtra Assembly polls are just five days away. Theinsurgents have warned politicians not to venture into their areas. (Deccan Herald 8/10/09)PM rules out use of armed forces against Naxals (12)Mumbai: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Sunday categorically ruled out use of armed forces againstNaxals but said the government was willing to hold talks with them if they abjured violence. He, however,refused to bracket Naxals with terrorists but asserted that they are banned forces in the country. Whileterming Naxalism as the biggest internal security threat, the Prime Minister said dialogue with them waspossible only if they shunned violence. He added that the government is taking all steps to deal with themenace of Naxalism and in months to come, there will be positive results on the Naxal front. At a pressconference after his interaction with a select people for seeking vote to the Congress and its allies in theOctober 13 assembly polls, Singh said the para-military forces and police are adequate for counter-Naxal

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)

Maoist forcibly recruiting children' (12)NEW DELHI: Maoist rebels are forcibly conscripting children in southern Chhattisgarh and exhortingvillagers to provide five boys or girls from every village to be recruited into their ranks, the home ministrysaid Tuesday. "The information reveals the real face of Naxals (Maoists), who not only kill children butalso put them in great danger by recruiting them in their armed squads to carry out their violent activities,"a ministry statement said. "The government condemns this despicable act on the part of Naxals andreiterates its commitment to control their diabolical activities." In 2007, the Chhatisgarh Police weresuccessful in securing the release of two minor girls from their clutches. In a recent report, theinternational rights body Human Rights Watch (HRW) demanded an end to the use of children under 18years in the conflict in Chhattisgarh as it places them at risk of injury and death and also violatesinternational law. "The Naxalites recruit children between ages six and twelve into children's associationscalled bal sangams, where children are trained in Maoist ideology, used as informers, and taught to fightwith non-lethal weapons and sticks," HRW said in its report released September last year. "Naxalitestypically promote children above the age of 12 to other wings - chaitanya natya manch or CNMs (streettheatre troupes), sangams (village-level associations), jan militias (armed informers), and dalams (armedsquads). In sangams, jan militias, and dalams, Naxalites give children weapons training with rifles andteach them to use different types of explosives including landmines." HRW said that all parties in theChhattisgarh conflict have used children in armed operations. The Maoist armed group, admitted that it istheir official practice to recruit children above the age of 16 in their forces, and they have used children asyoung as 12 years in armed operations. Similarly the government-backed Salwa Judum, a vigilante groupin Chhattisgarh has also used children in violent attacks against villages as part of their anti-Maoistcampaign, HRW said. The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC), the leading internationalbody monitoring conflict-induced internal displacement worldwide also pointed out that Maoists haverecruited children as young as 14 or 15 into armed squads and children between the ages of six and 12into children's associations where they are trained in Marxist ideology. IDMC also said the Salwa Judumcoerced internally displaced children as young as 12 to participate in meetings and raids along withgovernment security forces.(Express Buzz 20/10/09)“Naxalite leaders, cadres are also Indian citizens” (12)NEW DELHI: Home Minister P. Chidambaram, in his offer of holding talks with Maoists, reiterated hisbelief that the best way to address the real issues that affected people — food security, land and forestrights, education, health and justice was through a democratic system of governance. Mr. Chidambaramadmitted that the system may — and indeed does — have many shortcomings, but “it is still the best ofgovernance for a large and diverse country like India.” The Minister made the offer in a letter to the formerLok Sabha Speaker, Rabi Ray. He said the government believed that all political parties and all shades ofpolitical opinion can find space and opportunity to work in a democratic system to advance the causesthat are dear to them. “The CPI (Maoist) can be no exception. It is in this view that we have declared thatthe CPI (Maoist) should abjure violence and talks to the governments concerned – both at the Centre andat the State levels – on any issue that affects people.” Quoting from a lecture made by him on October 5,the Minister said naxalite leaders and cadres were Indian citizens and the poor tribals and non-tribals theymislead were also Indian citizens. “No government of a civilised country will wage war against its ownpeople. What we ask is that naxalites should abjure violence.” Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has alsodescribed naxalite problem as the most grave internal security challenge being faced by the country. TheHome Ministry termed “despicable act” the attempts by naxal groups to recruit children to carry out armedactions against security personnel. It said that it was committed to control the diabolical activities of leftwingextremists. “Intelligence inputs have indicated forced recruitment of children by naxals in southChhattisgarh. Naxalities are also exhorting villagers to provide five boys or girls per village for recruitmentin their armed squad,” an official spokesman of the Ministry said in a release on Tuesday. (The Hindu21/10/09)Three Maoists killed in Jharkhand (12)Ranchi, October 25, 2009: Three Maoist guerrillas were killed in a gun battle with security forces on theoutskirts of this Jharkhand capital, police said on Sunday. The gun battle took place near Jonha, around45 km from Ranchi, late on Saturday. After a tip-off, police had launched a search operation along withthe para-military forces. "Maoist rebels were going somewhere in two vehicles. When police tried to stopthem, they started firing at the police. In the gun battle, three Maoist guerrillas were killed," a police officer

said. The police officer said three rifles, live cartridges, hand grenades and other weapons wererecovered from the killed rebels. According to police, the rebels belonged to the Kundan Pahan(Hindustan Times 25/10/09)Former comrades on Naxal hitlist, 40 go underground (12)Hyderabad: After evading police for several years and living in the forests, several surrendered Maoistleaders are now being hounded by their former comrades. And those who are caught off guard are beingshot ruthlessly. At least 40 Maoists including somesenior leaders have now gone underground fearing fortheir lives. It all began with the killing of Ramlal, a former ‘Dalam’ Commander of the former CPI-ML’sPratighatana group, who surrendered in 2006. Ramlal had retired to Yatram village in Karimnagar district,but he was tracked down and shot dead by Maoists on October 12. The Maoists also wanted to eliminateMalla Rajiv Reddy, a former member of the Central Working Committee of the CPI(Maoist). Reddy wasarrested from Kerala in November 2007. He was released on bail on October 6 this year, but he wentunderground. “He feared that he would be targeted because he may have given lot of information topolice during custody. Reddy has not yet rejoined the Maoists so we assume he has gone undergroundfearing for his safety,” an official said. Ads by Google JetAirways Official Site Affordable Flight Ticketsstarting Rs 2071 (all inclusive). Book now!www.JetAirways.com/CICICI Bank A/c Holder? Excl. Offer &Gifts for ICICI Bank Customers. Visit to Know More!ICICIBank.com/FestivICICI Home Loans @ 8.75%Low EMI of Rs.884/Lakh, Home search assistance+ Home loan Insurance.ICICI-HomeLoans.comOtherslike CPI(Maoist) state committee secretary ‘Sambasivudu’ — his real name is K Ilaiaya — have also goneunderground. Sambasivudu surrendered on February 16 this year following differences with his partyleaders over excessive violence. Those on the run include former Central Committee Member Lanka PapiReddy, Nallamala Regional Committee member K Rajiya, former Andhra and Maharashtra statecommittee member K Venkateshwarlu, Chhattisgarh area deputy commander M Sambaiah and WarangalMahadevpur Dalam member Ramesh. (Indian Express 26/10/09)Maoists kill four CISF jawans (12)Raipur, Oct. 25: Maoists killed four Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) jawans by blowing up a patrolvehicle near Bacheli in Dantewada district of Chhattisgarh this evening. Sources said six CISF jawans leftfor the Rajabungalow area, about 10km from Bacheli, where the National Mineral DevelopmentCorporation (NMDC) has iron ore mines. As the six jawans were returning to Bacheli, about 450km southof Raipur, after discharging their duties, the rebels detonated a powerful landmine that blew up thevehicle passing through a hilly terrain around 5pm. “The explosion was very powerful. It tossed the jeepseveral feet high in the air before it landed and broke into pieces, killing four CISF jawans on the spot,”Amresh Kumar Mishra, the Dantewada superintendent of police, said. The rebels opened fireindiscriminately soon after the blast, Mishra said. They later fled into the forests, but did not loot arms andammunition of the jawans. Two other jawans injured in the blast were rushed to the NMDC hospital inBacheli where the condition of one was critical. Sources said the attack on the CISF team could be inretaliation to the gunning down of a hardcore Maoist, Raju, by security forces in the same area lastmonth. Three Maoist rebels were arrested too. (Telegraph 26/10/09)Supporters of Maoists detain train for 5 hours (12)KOLKATA: The New Delhi-bound Rajdhani Express from Bhubaneswar on Tuesday was detained fornearly five hours from 2.35 p.m. by supporters of the Maoist-backed Police Santrash BirodhiJanasadharaner Committee (PSBJC) at the Banstala Station near Jhargram town in West Bengal’sPaschim Medinipur district. The incident came on the first day of a bandh called by the outfit to protestagainst alleged atrocities by security forces on villagers. The two drivers were held hostage till securityforces arrived in the area. The forces cordoned off the train and arrangements were made later for it toresume journey. The PSBJC is demanding the unconditional release of its convener Chhatradhar Mahatoand those arrested for alleged Maoist links in Paschim Medinipur, Bankura and Purulia districts. Thoughthere were initial reports of the driver and the co-driver being abducted, they later clarified that they wereonly detained. Co-driver K. Govind Rao said he was forced to stop the train by applying the emergencybrakes when a group of men, who stood on the track, waved a red flag. As soon as the train stopped, thegroup asked the passengers as well as the drivers to get down and switch off their mobiles. He, however,added that none of them was manhandled. (The Hindu 28/10/09)

Maoist upsurge due to poverty: PM (12)SRINAGAR: Describing Maoist violence as an outcome of poverty in certain tribal regions of the country,Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said at a press conference here on Thursday that the problem needs tobe dealt with by concentrating on economic development of the backward regions besides maintaininglaw and order. The Prime Minister said that development activities are still not reaching the tribals whoremain the poorest of the poor. ‘‘Their poverty has alienated the population from the mainstream,’’ headded. ‘‘Maoist violence, therefore, needs to be tackled holistically. The focus ought to be to end thealienation of the tribal people. But observance of the law of the land would be a pre-condition to anysocial and economic development. The Maoists can’t be taking the law into their hands,’’ the PrimeMinister said at the end of his two-day tour of the Kashmir valley. Singh refused to comment on WestBengal government’s decision to release detained Maoists and their sympathisers from prison to securethe release of a police officer abducted by Maoists last week. ‘‘This is an internal matter of the stategovernment and the Centre can’t comment on it,’’ he said. In reply to a question about railway ministerand Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee’s reported statement that there were ‘‘no Maoists’’ —she had said there were no Maoists among her supporters who stood in protest during the agitation inSingur and Nandigram — the prime minister Manmohan Singh said: ‘‘The Maoist threat is a reality. Thecentre is duty-bound to deal with it in an effective manner.’’ The Maoists have escalated their attacks instates where they control large swathes of territory in recent months. Scores of security personnel havebeen killed in encounters in Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand and WestBengal.Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has described the Naxal menace as the single biggest hurdlebefore the nation’s progress.(Times of India 30/10/09)Maoists step up violence in West Midnapore and Orissa (12)Midnapor (WB): Suspected Maoist rebels on Sunday killed a former village head in Bhutashole village ofWest Midnapore district. Anil Mahato, who was a member of the Communist Party of India-Marxist,became the latest victim in the district hit by Maoist violence. Asoke Mahato, a kin of Anil Mahato, foundhim injured at a nearby school and called police. "We called up the local Salbani police station...theyasked us to bring him to the hospital...He had not been in his house for many days...When he came to hishouse and was taking rest then the attack took place," said Asoke Mahato. Meanwhile, in Orissa, Maoistrebels killed a tribal, suspecting him to be a police informer. About 40 Maoists attacked the Rebanavillage in Keonjhar district on Sunday and killed Sunaram Tudu. The rebels also beat up two others,threatening them not to cooperate with the police. "We received the message about the killing in Rebanavillage. The Special Operation Group and police force in four groups are heading for the spot. We will becarrying out combing operations and investigations in the area too," said Prashant Mohapatra, subdivisionalpolice officer of Ghatgaon area. Last month, suspected Maoists held the Rajdhani express train,which was freed by security forces after a five-hour hostage drama. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh hasdescribed Maoists as the biggest internal security challenge since independence, which began fourdecades ago championing the cause of poor peasants in the east, but has now spread to about 20 of 29states. Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram said the government was willing to talk to the Maoistsabout issues such as poverty and corruption that are often blamed for stoking the insurgency, but insistedthe rebels must first stop violence. (Zee News 2/11/09)Maoists killed Saraswati to get support from Christians (12)Bhubaneswar: Maoists might have killed VHP leader Laxamananda Saraswati for securing support of theminority Christians and expand their network in Orissa's Kandhamal district, the Commission probing themurder was informed here on Thursday. "Maoists might have killed Saraswati to get the support ofChristians," former Inspector in-Charge of Kotgarh police station HK Pradhan told Justice SC Mohapatra,probing the killing of Saraswati and the violence thereafter. Noting that the minority community inKandhamal was not accepting Saraswati's campaign against cow slaughter and religious conversion, thefield level officer said many houses were set ablaze and some churches attacked in Kotgarh area a dayafter the killing of Saraswati on August 23, 2008. Though no case relating to conversion was registered atthe police station, Pradhan said seven people were arrested for rioting and arson. "Land dispute betweentribal Kandhas and Pana Dalits added fuel to the riot." he said. He claimed though a riot broke out inKotgarh area, the police were not armed as all weapons were withdrawn from the police station. (Pioneer5/11/09)

Villagers flee war zone as govt battles Maoists (12)Lalgarh: Babulal Mahato hides in paddy fields each night in an eastern Indian village as security forcescarry out search operations for Maoist supporters. Along with dozens of villagers in West Bengal, 85-yearoldMahato does the same when the Maoists come to the village. "I am too old, so I hide," said Mahato,his eyes weary after spending many sleepless nights outside. "Many villagers have already left theirhomes and fled, fearing getting caught between the Maoists and police." In Lalgarh, a cluster of 150villages, daily rebel ambushes, police raids and civilians caught in the middle may be a sign of things tocome as the government prepares an offensive against Maoist insurgents. Central and state police inarmoured vehicles scour nearby jungles, a signal of the start of government's bid to stem a growingdecades-long insurgency. After a resounding general election win in May, the Congress party-ledgovernment, no longer dependent on communist parties in its coalition, has decided to take on anestimated 22,000 Maoist rebels who hold sway over swathes of countryside. Operation Green Huntreflects growing concerns that Maoists were becoming too strong after a decades-long insurgency. India'sstrong economic growth of the last few years did little to bring millions of poor villagers and tribals out ofpoverty that helps act as the backbone of Maoist support. In recent months, brazen attacks on passengertrains, attacks on mining companies and the beheading of a policeman have sparked national soulsearching. Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee has warned Maoist violence was a drain on resources.Politicians and rights activists now debate the planned offensive. Will it stem Maoist influence, or will itjust inflame tensions as villagers get caught in the crossfire? "Local people are at risk of being caught inthe middle of the fighting, killed, wounded, abducted, forced to take sides, and then risk retribution," saidMeenakshi Ganguly, senior South Asia researcher at Human Rights Watch. Six months ago, Maoists,who say they fight for poor farmers, took control of Lalgarh, a four-hour drive from east India's biggest cityof Kolkata. They drove away government staff, destroyed buildings and forced police to retreat. It was atakeover seen across hundreds of rural districts across a "red corridor" in central and eastern India. "It isnot a question of patrolling anymore. It is a question of engaging them, arresting them and killing them iffired upon," Kuldiep Singh, a senior police official in West Bengal, said. It will be a risky task. In Lalgarh,rebels are playing cat and mouse, firing at police camps in surprise attacks. "The people are with us, weare not backing out, and the government of India will learn a huge lesson if they continue their offensive,"Koteshwar Rao a.k.a. Kishenji, Maoist military commander, said in a rare telephone interview from anundisclosed location. (DNA 6/11/09)Maoists strike during Buddhadeb's visit, kill 3 (12)MIDNAPORE: Maoists struck with impunity killing three youths suspecting them to be police informersand shooting at and injuring a ruling CPI(M) leader as West Bengal Chief Minister BuddhadebBhattacharjee began a tour of the district today to take stock of the situation. Bullet-riddled bodies of threeyouths Lakhi Das, Jayram Mandi and Manoranjan, with hands and legs tied were found on a road inKusbani jungle about 70 km from here, the police said. The Maoists left behind posters claiming the threewere police spies and CPI(M) agents and had been punished. In Kolkata, Home Secretary Ardhendu Sensaid the three victims were Jharkhand Party activists. Shortly after the chief minister arrived for a reviewof the law and order and welfare measures in West Midnapore district where tribals-backed Maoist unresthas been continuing despite anti-Maoist operations by central paramilitary and state police, local CPI(M)leader Subhas Soren, was shot at, at Nandasole, about 75 km from here. Police said Soren, a member ofCPI(M)'s Gopiballavpur district committee, was accosted on the road at around 5:30 pm by suspectedMaoists who shot him below the hip. (Times of India 7/11/09)Organised Left prevented Naxals from forming base in WB: Yechury (12)New Delhi: Naxalism could not form a base in West Bengal for 30 years since its inception due to thepolitical battle waged by the organised Left, CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury has said."Please rememberthat Naxalbari is a village in West Bengal from where this ultra-Left (Naxal) deviation took place. And for30 years they could not come back to West Bengal only because of the fight we had put up," he toldKaran Thapar on his programme 'Devil's Advocate'. He charged the Trinamool Congress with bringingthem back, saying "they were imported into West Bengal by our political opponents ... in order to be usedagainst us." Yechury said the Trinamool Congress, which was "sitting in the Central government", wantedto fight the Left "using the Maoists and gave them shelter, gave them patronage. They were brought infrom across the border (of the state)". Defending the release of some tribal women in exchange for a

police officer who was held captive by the Maoists, he said they were "hapless tribal women and nothardened Maoists".The senior Marxist leader said the CPI(M)'s fight against the ultra-Left dated back tothe late 1960s and early 1970s when over a thousand of its cadres were killed. "We are the ones whohave lost the maximum number of people in the fight against the Maoists," he said. To questions as towhy the state government was failing to control the Maoists, Yechury said their activities were primarilyconcentrated in three districts of West Bengal bordering Jharkhand or Orissa. In this context, the CPI(M)leader gave the example of Veerappan, saying the forest brigand operated for two decades in the junglesof Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. "Could you catch him? ... Unless the forces of all the three stateswork together, it is not possible. That is how Veerappan was caught and this is what is required now," hesaid. (DNA 8/11/09)‘Offensive against Maoists will only affect tribal people’ (12)BANGALORE: “Operation Greenhunt will only escalate violence in the tribal areas,” said historian andsociologist Ramachandra Guha referring to the Union Government’s planned offensive against theMaoists. The author of ‘India After Gandhi’, said that some way had to be found for dialogue between theMaoists and the state. While warning the audience not to romanticise the Maoists, Mr. Guha cautionedthat the real losers in this would be the tribal people, as they are “simply sacrificial goats” in this battlebetween the state and the Maoists. Mr. Guha was speaking at a convention titled ‘The war within: theMaoists, the tribals and the state’, organised by a student group called Concern, at the Indian Institute ofScience (IISc.) here on Saturday. (The Hindu 9/11/09)Offensive against Maoists will only hit tribal people: Guha (12)BANGALORE: “Operation Greenhunt will only escalate violence in the tribal areas,” said historian andsociologist Ramachandra Guha referring to the Union Government’s planned offensive against theMaoists. The author of ‘India After Gandhi’, said that some way had to be found for dialogue between theMaoists and the state. While warning the audience not to romanticise the Maoists, Mr. Guha cautionedthat the real losers in this would be the tribal people, as they are “simply sacrificial goats” in this battlebetween the state and the Maoists. Mr. Guha was speaking at a convention titled ‘The war within: theMaoists, the tribals and the state’, organised by a student group called Concern, at the Indian Institute ofScience (IISc.) Himanshu Kumar, an activist with the Vanvasi Chetna Ashram in Dantewada inChhattisgarh, said that the war against the tribal people would only increase the sense of grievance andalienation. “When the government-sponsored militia, the Salwa Judum, became active in the region, therewas a 30-fold increase in violence and now with the Centre’s offensive, the scale of violence will onlyincrease,” said Mr. Kumar. Sudeep Chakravarti, the author of ‘Red Sun: Travels in Naxalite Country’, saidnaxalites understand their struggle as a form of class struggle with the idea of capturing power. (TheHindu 9/11/09)Condemn Maoist violence, government tells civil society (12)New Delhi, Nov 20 : A day after a passenger was killed and 40 others were injured in a train derailmentafter Maoist guerrillas blew up a track in Jharkhand, the government Friday asked the civil society tocondemn such 'wanton acts of violence' meant to sabotage polls in the state. Since the Jharkhand staterassembly elections were announced, the Communist Party of India (CPI)-Maoist has unleashed a reign ofterror in the state by "killing innocent persons and labelling them as informers" and targeting publicproperties, the union home ministry said. "They (the rebels) seem determined to carry out the threat todisrupt the polls," a statement from the ministry said. The five-phase state assembly polls in Jharkhandbegin Nov 25. The home ministry "thinks that civil society organisations should also play their part andcondemn the wanton acts of violence and ask the CPI-Maoist not to disrupt elections".Three schoolbuildings were damaged in Latehar district in separate acts of violence Nov 6 and 10, the ministry said,adding an under-construction Panchayat Bhavan was blasted in West Singhbhum Nov 15. "The CPI-Maoist exploded a bomb on a railway track between Manoharpur and Pusaita railway stations (Thursday);two bogies were blown up and six derailed. One passenger was killed and 40 were injured," thestatement said. It said the rebels "have also issued a call to the people to boycott the elections"."Thegovernment condemns these acts of violence. The Jharkhand government will continue to take preemptiveaction against the CPI-Maoist in order to maintain law and order and to facilitate free and fairelections," it added. (New Kerala 20/11/09)

India trying to deal with Maoists with calibrated approach (12)Indian government is working out a calibrated approach to deal with the Maoist problem as it does notwant to use disproportionate force against the naxals who enjoy "sizeable" support in the civil society.Even as Maoists carry out strike after strike, the government is undecided on launching any operationagainst them and is weighing pros and cons. "We are debating sensitivity and sensibilities whileconsidering the options. We are trying to review how best to go about it," said a government source here.While some operations have been launched, further actions are not being undertaken as the government"recognises that they (naxals) have sizeable amount of support in civil society", the source said. "Theproblem is not violence by Maoists, but the support from civil society who argue that they are a neglectedlot. We are trying to deal with the problem with a calibrated approach," the source added. Significantly,the source underlined that Maoists are a problem but they are not to be treated as "terrorists". PrimeMinister Manmohan Singh and Home Minister P Chidambaram have repeatedly described naxalism asone of the greatest internal threats to the country. Chidambaram has been saying that the government iswilling to hold talks with Maoists to address their grievances regarding development but wants them tocease violence first. Significantly, Chidambaram has not insisted on the Maoists laying down arms, sayinghe recognises that it was not practical. (Indian Express 22/11/09)Maoists set ablaze to 2 vehicles (12)MUNCHINGPUT (VIZAG): Maoists set ablaze to two vehicles and a chip-mixing machine engaged in aroad construction work at Lakshmipuram, 35 km from Munchigput, in the wee hours of Tuesday in protestagainst the alleged firing at the tribals in Pedapalli of Pedabayallu mandal on November 22. Nine armedMaoists, including three women, were involved in the incident. The vehicles belonged to a privatecontractor who was building a road under the NREGS. A tractor and a chip-mixing machine were fullydamaged while the roadroller was partially damaged by the Maoists. At the time of the incident nearly 30workers at near the site. Maoists alleged that the police conducted fake encounters at Kotipalli of Orissa,a border village of Andhra, Annavaram in Visakha Agency and killed innocent tribals by branding them asMaoists. (Times of India 2/12/09)Maoists set fire to tractor (12)VISAKHAPATNAM: Nine armed members, including three women, of the CPI (Maoist) set on fire a tractorand a chip mixing machine, which were being used in laying a road near Lakshmipuram in Munchingputmandal on Monday night. The incident happened a day before the Maoists commenced their annualweek-long People’s Liberation Guerrilla Army formation celebrations. The Maoists left some pamphletsand a banner at the site urging people to make the celebrations a success. They burned down the vehicleand equipment, belonging to a private contractor, in protest against the “firing by police against innocenttribals at Pydipalli in Pedabayalu mandal on Nov. 22 and other incidents in which the tribals were killed,the Maoists mentioned. (The Hindu 2/12/09)Iss jungle se mujhe bachao, cry Jharkhand cities (12)Dhanbad/Giridih/Bokaro: Lords of the jungles for long, the Maoists in Jharkhand are all set to target theurban areas. Main cities of the State — including its capital Ranchi, steel city Bokaro, coal capitalDhanbad and other industrial towns like Giridih and Jamshedpur — are on the hitlist of Maoists who areworried over the Central Government’s plan to launch an all-out offensive against them. The Assemblyelection in five phases —from November 25 to December 18 — has given them an opportunity to spreadterror. “Two days ago, the Naxals attacked a school building at Taliya near Barwaadda (local airport) inDhanbad district. This is the first instance of Naxal attack in the city. The airport is less than 10 km fromKoyla Nagar. The State-run mining major Bharat Coking Coal Limited (BCCL) has its offices at KoylaNagar. The largest labour colony in Asia, Bhuli Township, the famous Indian School of Mines and CentralInstitute of Mining and Fuel Research are lying in the vicinity. There is a possibility that the Naxals areplanning further penetration into the cities,” said a senior administrative official, who did not want to bequoted. He said that Maoist activity has intensified in the tribal regions of the coal capital like Tundi,Govindpur, Tealiya, Palma, Jatipur, Nawda, Bagaro, Harladih and Topchanchi. Ranchi is also underMaoist threat. The outlaws can target the State capital anytime on the lines of terrorist attacks. The steelcity and its nearby areas have also witnessed an increase in Maoist strikes. The movement of traffic onthe outskirts of the city was the least during the strike called by the Maoists prior to second phase of theAssembly election and a vast stretch of railway track between Jageswar and Dania in the district was

lown up. Over 200kg of explosive ammonium nitrate and 98 detonators were also seized recently.According to sources, the Naxals are increasingly infiltrating into the cities to indoctrinate youth andcollect funds. They are exploiting the issues like unemployment, corruption and lack of amenities despitenine years of rule by Adivasi leaders to drive home their view points. “There are reports that they haveroped in educated youth for propaganda. They even pay high remuneration and financial assistance totheir families,” said DK Singh, a retired police official. While political parties, including the Congress,Bharatiya Janata Party, Shibu Soren’s Jharkhand Mukti Morcha and Babulal Marandi-led JharkhandVikas Morcha decry Maoist violence in publice, they prefer to keep silent on the issue while in Maoistinfestedareas. (Pioneer 3/12/09)‘Govt ready for talks in 72 hrs if Naxals abjure violence’ (12)NEW DELHI: Days before the launch of its offensive against Maoists, Centre on Wednesday made onemore pitch for dialogue with extremists, saying that it would respond within 72 hours if the ultras decide totalk after "formally abjuring violence". Home minister P Chidambaram told the Rajya Sabha: "We arewilling to hold talks with Naxal groups, facilitate their talks with state governments. But the condition isthey should formally abjure violence." Referring to his earlier offer, Chidambaram said he was askingMaoists merely to merely abjure violence without insisting that they laid down arms. "I said abjureviolence.... give me 72 hours to respond. I will consult Prime Minister and chief ministers," said the homeminister, adding, "We can talk about any subject.. development, infrastructure, governance...we can talkany subject provided the Naxals abjure violence...but as long as violence persists, I see no scope fortalks." In fact, while extending the invitation, Chidambaram made a strong case for Centre's plans for anoffensive against the Naxalites, asking for a strong political consensus and exhorting the civil society tostop painting the Maoists as victims and the state as the villain. The home minister emphasized that theultras were not in favour of abjuring violence. He, while replying to a debate in Rajya Sabha on internalsecurity situation, said: "Their (Maoists) answer was abjuring violence is not on their agenda and theybelieve in armed struggle." He said if Maoists want they can contest election and come to Parliament."They can sit on your chair," he said, pointing at Chairperson's chair. Chidambaram said the country andParliament have to decide whether the violence followed by the Maoists can be supported. Quoting theCPI (Maoist) politburo resolution of June this year, the home minister said it showed that naxalites do notbelieve in the parliamentary system but in armed struggle and treat the state as enemy. "I never used theword enemy to describe Naxals...we are not at war with Naxals or tribal people," he said. "Is it not time tostand up and make a choice," Chidambaram asked members of all the parties in the Upper House. Herapped the civil society comprising former judges, journalists, lawyers and other intellectuals forsupporting the cause of naxalites. Referring to the point made by several opposition members and alsothe civil society that development is the answer to the problem, the home minister said this can happenonly when the civil administration is established in areas taken over by Maoists. Earlier while replying tosupplementaries during Question Hour, he said no Cabinet minister was a supporter of Naxal violence,apparently dismissing charges that railway minister Mamata Banerjee was sympathising with Maoists. Hesaid a group of people from West Midnapore district in West Bengal formed a group to protest againstpolice atrocities. "One or two of my (Cabinet) colleagues visited the area in order to talk to that group tofind out what their complaint was against the police," he said. Chidambaram, however, did not name theministers. He said the ministers had "never supported" Naxals. They are "totally against (Naxal) violence".The home minister said it was only a perception that ministers were supporting the Naxal movement.During his reply to the debate, Chidambaram later said the Centre's priority is to coordinate with the stategovernments to reclaim areas under Naxal control as was done in Lalgarh in West Bengal. (Times ofIndia 3/12/09)Maoists' anniversary celebrations hits life in Chhattisgarh (12)Raipur, December 08, 2009: Normal life was affected in Chhattisgarh's interior areas on Tuesday, the lastday of week-long anniversary celebrations of the outlawed Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist),with buses off the road and residents remaining indoors fearing attacks. The terror outfit was observingthe week-long (Dec 2-8) anniversary celebrations of its military wing, the People's Liberation GuerrillaArmy (PLGA). Officials at the police headquarters here said normal life was thrown out of gear in theentire restive Bastar region comprising Dantewada, Bijapur, Narayanpur, Kanker and Bastar districts asbus operators kept their vehicles off the road. The insurgents had blocked interior roads as well asnational highway 221 in Dantewada and national highway 16 in Bijapur with tree trunks. Life was also hit

in the state's western region, mainly the Rajnandgaon district bordering Maharashtra but no report ofviolence was received from anywhere in the state. Officials of the National Mineral Development Corp,India's largest iron ore producer and exporter, said the Maoists' celebrations had reduced iron ore supplyby about 30 percent as the East Coast Railway had cancelled goods train movement during the nightsince Dec 2 between NMDC's mining facilities at Kirandul in Dantewada district to Visakhapatnam port inAndhra Pradesh. (Hindustan Times 8/12/09)Maoists demand autonomy for three Bengal districts (12)Kolkata: A demand for autonomy for three tribal-dominated districts of West Midnapore, Bankura andPurulia in West Bengal was today made by a top Maoist leader, who also justified the Gorkhalandstatehood issue. "We demand autonomy for the three districts on the lines of the Darjeeling Gorkha HillCouncil," Maoist leader Kishenji told PTI from an undisclosed location. He alleged that the West Bengalgovernment had denied the legitimate rights of the people of the districts. Asked if he meant statehood,he replied, "the people of the three districts are not yet prepared for statehood." Queried if it was part ofthe demand for a 'greater Jharkhand', Kishenji said, "That demand is no longer relevant. The scenariohas changed." "Moreover the formation of Jharkhand has not solved any problem. Going forward with the'greater Jharkhand' demand will not solve the problem of tribals," he said. Kisenji, however, supported thedemand for Gorkhaland in Darjeeling stating that it was "legitimate"."It is the oldest demand for a separatestate. They should be allowed a separate state to focus on their development as the state governmenthas neglected the tea and tourism industry there," Kishenji claimed. (DNA 12/12/09)Maoists demand autonomy for three Bengal districts (12)Kolkata: A demand for autonomy for three tribal-dominated districts of West Midnapore, Bankura andPurulia in West Bengal was today made by a top Maoist leader, who also justified the Gorkhalandstatehood issue. "We demand autonomy for the three districts on the lines of the Darjeeling Gorkha HillCouncil," Maoist leader Kishenji told PTI from an undisclosed location. He alleged that the West Bengalgovernment had denied the legitimate rights of the people of the districts. Asked if he meant statehood,he replied, "the people of the three districts are not yet prepared for statehood." Queried if it was part ofthe demand for a 'greater Jharkhand', Kishenji said, "That demand is no longer relevant. The scenariohas changed." "Moreover the formation of Jharkhand has not solved any problem. Going forward with the'greater Jharkhand' demand will not solve the problem of tribals," he said. Kisenji, however, supported thedemand for Gorkhaland in Darjeeling stating that it was "legitimate"."It is the oldest demand for a separatestate. They should be allowed a separate state to focus on their development as the state governmenthas neglected the tea and tourism industry there," Kishenji claimed. (DNA 12/12/09)Tribals in Orissa revolt against Maoists, join hands with police (12)Bhubaneshwar: Tribals in Sundargarh district of north western Orissa, about 400km from here, are in amood to defy Maoists. The police have taken advantage of this sentiment and have started running acombing operation against the Maoists for the past three days. Around 600 villagers, with their bows,arrows, axes and shovels, are keeping them company. In this short time, the villagers of Langalkata,Mahupada, Tarbeda, Sanbalijor under the K Balanga police station have helped the police seize a largecache of arms and ammunition. This included landmines, bundles of gelatin wires, hand grenades andother explosives. Last Thursday, the tribals started fleeing their villages after the Maoists issued a threat.For nearly four days, they continued to live on the national highway under the watch of police. During thistime, the police motivated them to rebel against the Maoists who were either using them as informers orinducting them into their cadre. Getting police assurance, people have lent their support to the force."People have realised they need development and it is the administration, not the Maoists who can helpthem," said Rourkela superintendent of police Diptesh Patnaik, who goaded the tribals to rebel againstMaoists. The anti-Maoist operation would continue, Patnaik said. (DNA 16/12/09)Maoist shutdown paralyses Nepal (12)Kathmandu, December 20, 2009: With talks between three major parties failing to end the ongoingpolitical deadlock, Maoists in Nepal started their three-day general strike across the country on Sunday.Offices, schools and colleges and business establishments across Nepal remained closed and all formsof public transport remained off roads as Maoist cadres blocked highways. *(Sunday is a working day inNepal)* The shutdown is the final part of the third phase of agitation by Unified Communist Party of Nepal

(Maoist) seeking restoration of ‘civilian supremacy’ and an apology from President Ram Baran Yadav.Streets remained deserted as thousands of UCPN (M) workers blocked roads in the national capital andall other important towns. In several areas, security personnel were deployed to prevent any untowardincident. Although UCPN (M) chief Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ had stated that the strike would bepeaceful, some incidents of vandalism by Maoists were reported from the capital. *Nearly a dozenvehicles including one belonging to Minister of State for Tourism Shatrughan Mahato and motorcyclesbelonging to media persons were attacked by those enforcing the strike and at least 30 UCPN (M)workers were arrested by the police. * *Mahato who was going to the airport to receive Prime MinisterMadhav Kumar Nepal returning from Copehhagen escaped unhurt, but his vehicle was slightly damageddue to stone pelting by Maoists.* On Saturday Prachanda had blamed the government of lack ofseriousness in dealing with the impasse and playing into the hands of foreign players. Despite thegovernment request to allow essential services including movement of vehicles carrying petroleumproducts, four trucks carrying petrol from India were forced to turn back at the border town of Dhulikhel.“We were compelled to go ahead with the strike as the government is not serious on restoring civiliansupremacy and listening to the demands of the masses,” said UCPN (M) spokesperson DinanathSharma. Maoists in Nepal have been agitating since May after the UCPN (M)-led government steppeddown following a decision by President Yadav to overrule its move to sack the army chief. Absence of theformer rebels who belong to the largest party in parliament is affecting legislative work and also drafting ofthe country’s new constitution, which is to get over by May next year. (Hindustan Times 20/12/09)Maoists attack Orissa hydel project (12)BERHAMPUR: Power generation at the Balimela hydroelectricity project in south Orissa’s Malkangiridistrict was disrupted following an attack by Maoists on the infrastructure of the unit during the early hoursof Sunday. Power had not resumed at the unit till evening. A high-level team of the Orissa Hydro PowerCorporation, which manages the unit, is on the way to the spot. Speaking to The Hindu, MalkangiriSuperintendent of Police Satyabrata Bhoi said about a dozen armed Maoists launched the attack ataround 12.30 a.m. The project is located in a remote area around 60 km from Malkangiri. The Maoistswere targeting the areas of the unit that had low security. When the naxals reached the tunnel camp ofthe project, it was deserted. Then the attack took place. (The Hindu 21/12/09)Maoist attack on CPM couple surprises villagers (12)BINPUR: None had ever thought that Maoists would target this amiable CPM couple Amiya and NeelimaSengupta. So when Neelima, a member of Dohijuri gram panchayat, left her home after surviving thenight-long rampage by armed Maoists at her home on Monday night, her neighbours were in tears. "Inever thought of leaving this place. We didn't ever harm anybody. I am leaving. I don't know when I willcome back to this place," she told her neighbour. Other neighbours, who had come to say goodbye totheir 'didi', were all praise for the couple. They had gathered early in the morning soon after policereached the spot where Maoists led the attack, set houses on fire of some of local traders and that of theSengupta couple. Smoke was still coming out the three-storey house. Neelima had hidden herself, herfour daughters and two-and-a-half-month-old grandson at the rear portion of the building as the armedbrigade downstairs was trying to set the house on fire. And as luck would have it, her husband Amiya hadgone to Bankura for treatment. The entire family, including four daughters, spent the night with baitedbreath. A scream of the baby would have helped Maoists to spot the family. Neelima came out of hidingonly on Wednesday morning after police reached the spot. "Give me some water. We did not drink a dropsince Monday night," she told a reporter. Even the local traders whose houses had been ransacked hadno inkling of the attack. It began around 9pm on Monday when a huge crowd with covered faces startedmarching towards the Dohijuri village, six km from Jhargram town. Initially, it looked like a rally, but soonvillagers could sense the danger when unknown men in motorbikes started moving towards Dohijuri.Minutes later, they started felling trees on the roads. (Times of India 23/12/09)Naxals to foment trouble on Bhumkal centenary (12)NAGPUR: The Dandakaranya Special Zonal Committee and Maharashtra state committee of theNaxalites have jointly issued a pamphlet cautioning the government of widespread tribal uprising markingthe centenary of the tumultuous 'Mahan Bhumkal' movement that had rocked the British in 1910. Thepamphlet talks of a mass upheaval in the hinterlands to be guided by their 'scientific approach', sends athreat that 2010 shall witness the revival of the preindependence revolution. Shortly after the state

government's announcements of series of initiatives to counter the rebels during the ongoing wintersessions, the Maoists have fallen back on familiar tactics of trying to persuade security forces not to fight.They have said the security personnel were members of the same deprived class for whom the strugglehas been initiated. The rebels have alleged that the plan of the top politicians like Congress party chiefSonia Gandhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Union home minister P Chidambaram, Maharashtrachief minister Ashok Chavan, Chhatisgarh chief minister Raman Singh and others to quell the tribalmovement is nothing but a suppressive step against the deprived population that is fighting for justice.They called Prime Minister Singh 'Imperialistic America's faithful loyalist' who is shielding the 'exploiters'and branding Maoists a threat to the country. (Times of India 24/12/09)Naxalism remained a serious internal security concern in 2009, MHA report (12)New Delhi, Dec 24 (ANI): The Government has revealed that in 2009 the Naxal menace remained amajor concern and it is serious concern over the growing naxal menace in some parts of the country.Ministry of Home Affairs in the year-end review report has stated Naxal violence poses one of the gravestinternal security threats before the country. The report says in the current year(till November 30, 2009)the number of incidents of Naxal violence have been 2,016 compared to 1,452 incidents in thecorresponding period last year. 514 civilians and 304 personnel of security forces have been killedcompared to 444 civilians and 217 security forces killed in the corresponding period last year. To dealwith the menace in an effective and decisive manner, the Union Home Ministry has devised and approveda plan to take joint and co-ordinated action against Naxalites, reveals the report and states: "The actionplan was prepared after wide-ranging consultations with the States including two conferences attended bythe Chief Ministers of the Naxal-affected States." The Home Ministry provided 58 CRPF battalions to theStates for anti-Naxal duties. In June 2009, the Communist Party of India (Maoist) was included in theSchedule of terrorist organisations under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967. During the yearthe Home Ministry also approved to bring the Nizamabad district of Andhra Pradesh; Deogarh, Jaipur,Kondhamal, Dhenkanal and Nayagarh districts of Orissa and Kunti and Ramgarh districts of Jharkhandunder the ambit of Security Related Expenditure Scheme, the report mentions. In August, revisedguidelines and package for surrender and rehabilitation of Naxalites were issued. The Central Scheme forAssistance to Victims and family of victims of terrorist and communal violence was extended to victims ofNaxal violence, says the report. The Centre also proved the full assistance of CPMFs to West Bengal tohelp restore the State writ in Lalgarh area, the year-end report states. (ANI) (One India 24/12/09)xxxxxxxx

NAXAL/ MAOISTS- 2009 - Indian Social Institute

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