Edge with Maoists in restive Bastar By brutally killing 14 CRPF jawans and injuring 15, Maoist ultras have once again proved their precision in trapping and unleashing assaults on as combat-ready a force as the CRPF. The attack in Sukma on Monday evening was made possible only because the Maoists were able to stop the state from building its network of sympathisers and informers, while simultaneously being able to penetrate the abysmal state intelligence mechanism at will. Ambush that claimed 14 lives, including those of two officers, is another in the list of the state’s countless failures to wage guerrilla warfare against an enemy that is fully prepared and equipped for assiduous jungle warfare, relying on the deep inroads it has made into the society of tribals who live in thick forests and comprehensive network of informers spread across Bastar. State apparatus with vast resources at its disposal is still struggling to gain some ground in the troubled areas of south Bastar. Most parts of Dandakaranya in south, Abujhmaarh in south east Bastar remain inaccessible and largely unknown to the state’s forces due to the tough terrain. Socio-economic alienation of tribes makes it difficult to build formidable network of state sympathisers. Anyone with slightest hint of a police connection in Maoist infested areas is wiped out mercilessly. Notwithstanding mounting pressure from security forces amid so-called “surrender spree” by lower level ultras, Maoists were patiently waiting to unleash their trademark terror tactics. What appears clear from ambush in Chintagufa area of Sukma district is strategic advantage that the outlawed ultras had over largely inefficient Chhattisgarh Police. By penetrating the police informer network, they made the security forces believe that top Maoist commanders Devji, Venkatesh, Dandakaranya Special Zonal Committee secretary Ramanna were in the area. With an aim to flush the ultras from the area of their domination, security forces launched a massive hunt and at least four stray encounters including an attack on a helicopter appeared to confirm heavy Maoist presence in the area. “This is how they lure the forces for a big hunt and wait until the last moment to unleash a dreaded assault. In the recent ambush ultras were tracking minute-to-minute movement of a search party consisting of 237 jawans of CRPF, Cobra battalion and district forces through their vast network of informers and sympathisers”, Dreaded ambush came in the wake of rising incidents of surrender by lower level Maoists in past few months. Observers, Opposition parties raised questions about the “surrender spree”, aggressively spearheaded by Bastar IGP, SRP Kalluri, and alleged that “swelling figures” of surrendered ultras were exaggerated.
Posted on: Wed, 03 Dec 2014 13:30:00 +0000
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