Nine states share intel on controlling Maoist-related problems

[Hindustani78]

http://indianexpress.com/article/in...t-killed-7-cops-in-palamu-found-dead-4583973/

By: Express News Service | Ranchi | Published:March 24, 2017 6:56 pm

A Maoist sub-zonal commander, Ajay Yadav, who carried a reward of Rs 5 lakh on his head, and two other Maoist operatives were found dead, while another Maoist was arrested from the forests under Mohammadganj police station area of Jharkhand’s Palamu district on Friday morning. Yadav was involved in the Kala Pahad IED blast case in which seven police personnel were killed in Palamu on January 27, 2016.

The police said that it appeared the Maoist cadres had a gun-fight between themselves. The police denied the role of Tritiya Prastuti Committee (TPC), a Maoist splinter group.

According to the police, information about Maoists bodies was received early today, following which a joint team of the CRPF and the district police rushed to the jungles near Sita Chuan area under Mohammadganj PS. “We have recovered three bodies from the spot. Also, one person has been arrested. We have verified that one of the bodies was that of Ajay Yadav, aged around 39, and a zonal commander of the Maoists. The arrested person has been identified as Uday Oraon. The identity of the two others is being verified, although the arrested person has claimed that their names are Surendra and Virendra,” said DIG (Palamu) Vipul Shukla.

Shukla further added that the police have recovered huge amount of arms and ammunition. At least one AK-47, one SLR, one INSAS, one .303 rifle, one .315-bore fire arm and a semi-automatic rifle have been recovered in the search operation. Further, the police have recovered 650 cartridges, 11 mobile phones, 23 magazines, six backpacks, one IED flash, knives and swords etc.

The DIG added that Yadav, though only a sub-zonal commander, was involved in orchestrating most of the attacks in this region and had more than a dozen cases registered in different police stations of Palamu and Latehar. “He was the one who had engineered the Kala Pahad IED blast. Besides, though lower in rank, he controlled Maoist activity in the border areas of Palamu and Latehar,” he said.

The police are suspecting that the killing was a result of fight between Maoists themselves. “It is certainly not a case of TPC and Maoists engaging in encounter. Had that been the case, we could not have recovered so many weapons. They don’t leave weapons on the spot,” said Shukla.

The official added that a massive combing and search operations across Latehar and Palamu had been launched for the past six days. “It is possible that the Maoists had gathered in this area and there was some of an argument that led to the fight. Our search and cordon operation is continuing. Further probe is on. The development will have major impact on naxal activities in the area,” said Shukla.

 

[Hindustani78]

http://indianexpress.com/article/in...maoist-zone-sukma-chhattisgarh-naxal-4590153/

Written by Dipankar Ghose | Raipur | Published:March 29, 2017 3:08 am

A Canadian, John Szlazak, went missing in Maoist stronghold of south Sukma in Chhattisgarh on Tuesday, triggering alarm in the state administration.

Chhattisgarh Police said Szlazak was stopped by Maoists and dalam members to enquire about his presence in the area.

Amid suggestions that he has been abducted, the police said that the Canadian was safe, and expressed hope that he would be released in a day or two.

Senior police officials told The Indian Express that Szlazak, who was cycling across various parts of the country, had most likely strayed into the Maoist stronghold of Kistaram in south Sukma.

“The Canadian national has an emergency button with him, which was activated on Monday, and he sent out a distress signal. His last location’s coordinates was in Singamadgu forests,” said D M Awasthi, Special DG (Anti-Naxal Operations).

“Given the sensitivity of the issue, we have not sent any police parties to the area where we believe he is. We have asked other locals and contacts to find out the details,” said P Sundar Raj, IG (Bastar).

Sukma SP Abhishek Meena said local traders and forest officials have been asked to go to the area and inform the Maoists that Szalazak has no connections with the government and is a “neutral visitor”.

Earlier in the day, Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj tweeted on Szalak’s abduction, saying that her ministry has taken note of the incident and spoken to Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on the issue. She also sought for a report from the state government.

There were suggestions that the Szalak may have been in Koraput or Malkangiri in Odisha, but it became clearer through the day that he was in Sukma.

The Canadian embassy said they could provide little information due to privacy laws. They were in constant touch with the government.

With ENS, Delhi

 

[Hindustani78]

http://www.thehindu.com/news/nation...k-doikalu-railway-station/article17749155.ece

In one of the explosions caused by the Naxalites, the engine of a goods train was damaged.
Maoists attacked the Doikalu railway station in Rayagada district of Odisha around midnight on Thursday, protesting against the proposed visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the State. In one of the explosions caused by the Naxalites, the engine of a goods train was damaged.

Several trains were detained following the violence. Maoists left behind handwritten posters,which criticised the policies of Modi and Naveen Patnaik governments and Mr. Modi's proposed visit to the State on April 15 and 16 to attend the BJP’s national executive meeting.

According to station master S.K. Parida, about 15 to 20 Maoists entered the station at 12.15 a.m., pushed out railway officials and exploded bombs. They moved out around 2 a.m.

On receiving information, Rayagada Superintendent of Police (SP) K. Siva Subramani rushed to the spot.

Railway authorities said train movement had not been restored in the route yet. Services on the track passing via Doikalu will resume after the security and safety aspects are completely ascertained.

12843 Puri-Ahmedabad express is detained at the Rayagada station, 22838 Ernakulam-Hatia Express stoped at the Bobbili station, 58530 Visakhapatnam-Durg passenger at Jimidipeta, 58302 Koraput-Sambalpur passenger stopped enroute, 58528 Visakhapatnam-Raipur Express is detained at Gajapatinagaram, 18437 Bhubaneswar-Junagarh Express stopped at the Rayagada Statoin and 17482 Tirupati-Bilaspur Express has been stopped en-route.

 

[Hindustani78]

http://www.thehindu.com/news/nation...m-member-killed-by-naxals/article17767662.ece

A former ‘Salwa Judum’ member was allegedly killed by Naxalites in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district on Monday, police said.

Modiam Somlu (50), an ex-member of the erstwhile anti-Naxalite movement Salwa Judum, was fatally attacked by the ultras at Loharpara village in Bijapur early this morning, a district police official told PTI.

Somlu, a native of Pundri village, had gone to Loharpara, located around 400 km from Raipur, to fetch ‘sulfi’ (a popular drink among tribals prepared from sulfi plants) when a group of armed rebels stormed there.

The Naxals pumped bullets into him and also stabbed him with sharp-edged weapons, he said.

Police rushed to the spot on getting information about the incident and sent the body for postmortem, he said.

Somlu had earlier served as sarpanch of Pundri.

A manhunt has been launched to nab the attackers who escaped into the thick forest after committing the crime, the police official said.

Salwa Judum, an anti-Maoist civil militia, was disbanded in 2011 in Chhattisgarh following a Supreme Court order declaring as illegal and unconstitutional the deployment of tribal youth as special police officers in the fight against Maoist insurgency.

 

[Hindustani78]

http://indianexpress.com/article/in...hwart-naxal-bid-to-disrupt-road-work-4603996/

By: PTI | Raipur | Published:April 7, 2017 8:51 pm
The Border Security Force has set up two new posts in the Naxal affected Kanker district of Chhattisgarh to facilitate road construction projects.

“Both the company operated bases (COB) were set up last week in the highly sensitive region of Kanker bordering with Maharashtra,” Inspector General, Frontier Headquarters of BSF in Bhilai, Mahendra Singh said. One BSF post has been set up at Kanhargaon village which is on the border of Kanker and Gadchiroli (Maharashtra) to ensure security to the Bande-Irpanaar road (36 km long) and the other at Charre Marre village for the Antagarh-Amabeda road (35 km long), he said.

The road between Bande and Irpanaar villages goes through dense forests along the Chhattisgarh-Maharashtra border which is considered a Maoist den. The route connecting Antagarh tehsil to Amabeda village passes through some hilly forests where also the ultras are quite active.

In view of the attempts made in the past by Naxals to thwart development works in these areas, the paramilitary force has been tasked to ensure safety to the construction work and the people engaged in it, the IG said. “It is only roads that will help in mobilisation of security forces, economic activity, government schemes, hospitals and ambulances to reach the tribal areas,” he said.

Singh said these roads are the most important tool in fighting the Left Wing Extremism in the area. Presently, five different roads are being laid under the security cover of the BSF in Kanker.

Notably, the BSF has eight battalions (nearly 8,000 personnel) in Chhattisgarh, all concentrated in Kanker district, which is around 150 km from state capital Raipur. The BSF Frontier Headquarters is at Bhilai in Durg district of the state.

The paramilitary force ensured security to the construction of four roads in 2015 and eight in 2016 in Kanker, as per an official release.

The BSP personnel succeeded in instilling a sense of security among the local population and bringing peace and order by carrying out an extensive operation against Maoists in the area, the release said.

 

[Hindustani78]

http://www.hindustantimes.com/india...hhattisgarh/story-vKNWxljd8K3JiXFtrOVr9O.html

Cracker had sniffed an IED when the bomb went off. (ANI Photo)

A sniffer dog of the CRPF died and his handler was injured on Saturday when a pressure bomb planted by Maoists went off in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district, police said.

The incident occurred at around 1620 hours when a Road Opening Party (ROP) of CRPF’s 170th battalion was returning to its camp after a combing operation in Modakpal police station area, a district police official told PTI.

The ROP, accompanied by a sniffer dog, had launched the operation from its camp in Chinna Kodepal village.

Just 2km ahead of the camp, the canine, named Cracker, sniffed a pressure IED (improvised explosive device). The device got triggered probably due to some movement during sniffing and exploded, killing the canine, he said.

Its handler, constable B Bhanu Prakash Reddy, received minor injuries on his hand, the official said.

Cracker, a Belgian shepherd (Malinois) breed dog, was inducted into the CRPF battalion in December 2015, he said.

File photo of Cracker, the CRPF sniffer dog who died in an IED blast. (ANI Photo)

 

[Hindustani78]

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/nati...licemen-killed-in-encounter-with-maoists.html

The slain cops have been identified as officer Vidyapati Singh and constable Tarun Burali.

Simdega (Jharkhand): Two policemen were killed in an encounter with Maoists that took place on Saturday night in Simdega's Mahabuang Thana district in Jharkhand.

The slain cops have been identified as officer Vidyapati Singh and constable Tarun Burali.

According to the information, the administration had organised the Janata Darbar at Mahabung, about 65 km from the district headquarters on Saturday.

In connection with the preparation of the program of Janata Darbar and Chief Secretary, the police station in-charge went to the area along with the police force. While returning from there, the Maoists fired indiscriminately on the police team.

The area surrounding the encounter site has been blocked. Additional security forces have been sent to the area.

 

[Hindustani78]

Bano police station in-charge Vidhyapati Singh and Raju Biruli were killed in a gunfight in Jharkhand.(HT Photo)
http://www.hindustantimes.com/india...n-jharkhand/story-RtQLvYytKOedBmARL3NWmN.html

A sub-inspector and a policeman were killed in a gunfight with a rebel group, the People’s Liberation Front of India (PLFI), late Saturday in Jharkhand’s Simdega district that falls in the so-called Red Corridor.

Bano police station in-charge Vidhyapati Singh and his team of four guards stormed a house in Mahabuang village in Bano block, around 165km west of the state capital Ranchi, in the night after they were alerted about the presence of PLFI second-in-command Guddu Gope, police said.

As he came face to face with the rebel commander, Singh asked him to surrender but Gope opened fire with an AK-47, injuring Singh and district constabulary jawan Raju Biruli.

“Our OC (officer in-charge) did not fire first as there were women in the house,” Simdega superintendent of police Rajiv Ranjan Singh said.

Gope managed to flee under the cover of darkness but a gunfight broke out between his men and the police team. The area was cordoned off and more personnel rushed to the site. Guns fell silent around midnight after the rebels fled the area.

SI Singh and Biruli were taken to a local hospital but were declared dead.

The sacrifice of the two men would not go in vain and the PLFI would pay a very heavy price for the assault, SP Rajiv Ranjan Singh said.

The PLFI is the second biggest Left wing extremist group after the CPI (Maoists) that is active in the western districts of Jharkhand, parts of neighbouring Odisha, Bihar and Chhattisgarh.

The two killings are a departure from the way the PLFI operates. Unlike other hardline Left outfits active in these parts, the group had so far avoided a direct confrontation with security forces.

Senior police officers have rushed to Simdega to take stock of the situation. An offensive against PLFI would be launced soon, sources in the police headquarters said.

An ex-soldier-turned-rebel, 41-year-old Dinesh Gope founded the group in 2003. The group, say police, are hired guns who kidnap, murder and extort money.

He, however, told HT in an interview last year that he was leading an armed rebellion against landlords and upper-caste people to bring justice and equality to villages where the government was not invisible.

PLFI runs a few schools for poor tribals in Jharkhand and Odisha. Dinesh Gope enjoys Robin Hood-kind of standing in some villages but police say it’s the fear of his gun that forces villagers to side by him.

 

[Hindustani78]

The members of AGNI during its recent meeting.

http://www.thehindu.com/news/nation...-front-regroups-in-bastar/article17910912.ece

The new edition of the AGNI also involves many members of the Salwa Judum which was banned by Supreme Court in 2011.

A self-proclaimed anti-Maoist group in Maoist insurgency-hit Bastar region of Chhattisgarh, which was dissolved within hours after the removal of controversial police officer Mr.Shiv Ram Prasad Kalluri from Bastar earlier this year, has been formed again.

The Action Group for National Integrity popularly known as “AGNI” came into existence for the second time during a recent meeting of “imminent citizens” of Bastar at Jagdalpur district headquarters of the region.

“The former convener of the AGNI Mr.Anand Mohan Mishra and representatives from some other organizations like the Bastar chamber of commerce met at Jagdalpur on April 5. Many imminent citizens stressed on the need of the existence of AGNI during this meeting. After this meeting, Mr.Sampat Jha and Mr.Subba Rao (former members of the ANGI) have decided to announce that the AGNI has been regrouped again,” said a statement circulated by the AGNI.

“With the regrouping, it has been decided to establish AGNI's branches in other districts of Chhattisgarh and other states also. All the states, which are affected by Maoist violence, will be included in the AGNI,” the organization added.

The AGNI was formed last year after the dissolution of notorious Samajik Ekta Manch, an anti-Maoist organization formed by the members of former anti-Maoist militia Salwa Judum with the support of a section of the then Bastar police top brass.

Many members of the Samajik Ekta Manch were accused of an attack on the house of a freelance journalist in Bastar last year and in many other such incidents.

The existence of Samajik Ekta Manch in Bastar coincided with many incidents of attacks on human rights activists and campaign against journalists covering this conflict-hit region.

The new edition of the AGNI also involves many members of the Salwa Judum which was banned by Supreme Court in 2011.

These anti-Maoist vigilante groups along with the then team of IPS officers in Bastar headed by Mr.Kalluri were in news for their controversial statements and their hostilities towards journalists covering the region and human rights activists.

The AGNI members were disappointed with the removal of Mr.Kalluri from Bastar and had disbanded their group within hours. Other IPS officers were also removed from Bastar after a few days after Mr.Kalluri’s transfer.

 

[Hindustani78]

Police persons pay tribute to seven policemen who killed when a prison van dashed into a truck in Bihar’s Sitamarhi district.

 

[Hindustani78]

http://www.thehindu.com/news/nation...ts-in-sukma/article18199641.ece?homepage=true

Seven other CRPF men suffered injuries
Twenty-Four Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) men were killed on Monday in an encounter with Maoists in Chhattisgarh’s Sukma district, Additional Director General of Police R.K.Vij said.

The encounter took place near Burkapal CRPF camp on Dornapal Jagargunda road of Sukma. Six CRPF men suffered injuries in the encounter and were airlifted from the scene to Raipur. Two out of the six injured jawans are said to be in critical condition. All weapons and complete ammunition of the 12 martyred CRPF men were looted by Maoists.

One of the injured jawans who was brought to Raipur claimed that 300 Maoists were present on the spot and 12 of them were killed in the attack.

The jawans are from the 74th battalion of the CRPF.

 

[Hindustani78]

President's Secretariat
24-April, 2017 21:10 IST
President of India condemns attack on CRPF personnel in Chhattisgarh

The President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee has strongly condemned the attack in Sukma District of Chhattisgarh today (April 24, 2017) in which a number of CRPF personnel lost their lives and several are injured.

In a tweet, the President said ‘Strongly condemn attack on CRPF personnel in Chhattisgarh; condolences to families of deceased & prayers for injured’.

The President has also written to Shri BalramjiDassTandon, the Governor of Chhattisgarh. In his message, the President has said “I am distressed to learn about the attack in Sukma District of Chhattisgarh in which a number of CRPF personnel lost their lives and several are injured.

In this moment of grief, I offer my profound condolences to the families of the CRPF jawans who sacrificed their lives in the line of duty. May the Almighty give them the strength and fortitude to bear this irreparable loss. I also pray for the speedy recovery of the injured.

I am sure the State Government and other concerned agencies are taking necessary measures to assist the bereaved families and provide medical assistance to the injured. Please keep me informed of developments in the above regard”.


*****

Prime Minister's Office
24-April, 2017 19:08 IST
PM deplores attack on CRPF personnel in Chhattisgarh

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has called the attack on CRPF personnel in Chhattisgarh as cowardly and deplorable. The Prime Minister praised the valour of the CRPF personnel and said that the sacrifice of the martyrs will not go in vain.

“Attack on CRPF personnel in Chhattisgarh is cowardly and deplorable. We are monitoring the situation closely.

We are proud of the valour of our CRPF personnel. The sacrifice of the martyrs will not go in vain. Condolences to their families.

May those injured in today's attack in Chhattisgarh recover at the earliest”, the Prime Minister said.

***

The Union Home Minister, Shri Rajnath Singh paying tributes to the martyred CRPF personnel, in Raipur, Chhattisgarh on April 25, 2017. The Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh, Dr. Raman Singh and the Minister of State for Home Affairs, Shri Hansraj Gangaram Ahir are also seen.

The Union Home Minister, Shri Rajnath Singh paying tributes to the martyred CRPF personnel, in Raipur, Chhattisgarh on April 25, 2017. The Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh, Dr. Raman Singh and the Minister of State for Home Affairs, Shri Hansraj Gangaram Ahir are also seen.

 

[Hindustani78]

http://zeenews.india.com/india/sukma-naxal-attack-president-observes-two-minute-silence-1999395.html

Panaji (Goa): President Pranab Mukherjee today observed two-minute silence to pay respect to the 25 CRPF personnel who lost their lives in the Naxal attack in Chhattisgarh.
Mukherjee was here to inaugurate the 29th convocation of Goa University.

When the function began, organisers requested the President and other dignitaries including Goa Governor Mridula Sinha, Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar and a large number of students present during the function to pay respects to the martyrs.

Raipur: A CRPF trooper who survived the massacre of 25 colleagues by Maoists in Chhattisgarh said on Tuesday that 50 insurgents would be killed in revenge.

Constable Mahendra Kumar, warded in a hospital here, said in a slow and halting voice that he himself would go back to Sukma district, where the carnage took place on Monday, once he recovers.

Sounding weak and with his head bandaged, Kumar said from the hospital bed that the Central Reserve Police Force contingent was in a forested patch to give security to workers engaged in building a road.

"Suddenly firing began from our left," he told journalists. "From nowhere 30 to 40 Maoists emerged and began firing.

"When we began retaliatory firing, they split into two or three groups and scattered in three directions.

"One group went to our front, got into a pit that had been dug up and resumed firing. The others took us on from both the left and right side."

Kumar felt that 25 to 30 Maoists were injured in the counter firing by the CRPF.

Suddenly, a bullet grazed Kumar's shoulder, felling him. When he woke up, he found himself in a hospital.

Other CRPF troopers who escaped the massacre had similar tales.

One wounded trooper said he suspects a few cowherds who came to the spot the CRPF personnel were located in, apparently passed on the information to the Maoists.

"They saw our location. We suspected something but could not do anything since they were not armed.

"About 15 minutes after they left, scores of Maoists appeared on the scene, dressed in black. And they attacked us from all sides. We too hit back."

According to him, the Maoists had AK-47 assault rifles, Self Loading Rifles, INSAS Rifles, rocket launchers and mortars.

"In fact they had all the weapons that the CRPF has."

After the Monday carnage, the attackers escaped with several more weapons, adding to their weaponry in a vast forested tribal-dominated region where the Maoists have run a parallel state for decades.

A third CRPF trooper put the number of Maoists who ambushed them at about 300. They outnumbered the 99 CRPF personnel who were readying for lunch when they were targeted.

It was the worst attack by Maoists on security forces in Chhattisgarh since 2010.

http://zeenews.india.com/india/where-is-sukma-and-why-it-is-a-naxal-hotbed-1999017.html

Raipur: The Sukma region of Chhattisgarh has once again come into focus after 24 CRPF jawans were butchered in cold blood by the Naxals on Monday afternoon.

Sukma is long known as a hotbed of the violent Naxal movement.

There are several factors which make Sukma an ideal ground for movement of Naxalites.


The Sukma region shares its border with two states – Odisha and Telangana, thereby giving an easy escape route to the ultras, though efforts have been made in recent years to ensure coordination between different state police departments.

Sukma, which is part of the Bastar Region, shares its boundary with the Malkangiri district of Odisha and the Khammam district of Telangana.

Though, the security forces have made considerable progress in recent years in curbing Naxal activities in the district, some areas continue to hold sway in favour of the the Naxals.

For the first time in three decades, the tricolour was hoisted last year in the stronghold of Gompad village to celebrate Independence Day. Earlier, the Naxals used to unfurl a black flag in the village in protest.

The current ambush at the Dornapal-Chintagufa area is known for such attacks in the recent past.

In 2010, more than 70 security personnel were killed in the area in a Naxal attack.

Areas with the most Naxal presence in the state include Sukma, Dantewada, Narayanpur, Bijapur, Bastar, Kanker and Kondagaon.

SP (Rural) Raj Kumar Lakra along with ASP (Operations) R C Mishra and Deputy Commandant (Operations) Anuj Kumar presenting the four arrested CPI (Maoist) members and the arms and ammunitions seized from them during a press conference in Ranchi.

People hold candle and placard to pray for CRPF jawans lost their lives in a Naxal attack in Chhattisgarhs Sukma district, in Ahmedabad.

 

[Tshering22]

This is why I don't like Rajnath Singh. All he does is "kadi ninda" and walks away after offering a funeral bouquet to the martyrs' coffins.

We need a more muscular MHA.

This guy is not fit for the job.

Also CRPF needs to be pulled back and Army needs to be sent in with full freedom to engage these lunatics.

 

[Hindustani78]

This is why I don't like Rajnath Singh. All he does is "kadi ninda" and walks away after offering a funeral bouquet to the martyrs' coffins.

We need a more muscular MHA.

This guy is not fit for the job.

Also CRPF needs to be pulled back and Army needs to be sent in with full freedom to engage these lunatics.

Problem is smuggling of weapons from cross border . Red Corridor