Post Bastar, authorities to go after top Maoist leadership

In the wake of the horrific May 25 Bastar massacre which claimed the lives of 26 persons, authorities have now decided to target top Maoist leadership.

While this would take a  coordinated effort by the nine affected states (Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Maharashtra) to track and eliminate the top leadership, security experts are of the view that the programme ought to be launched in non-Maoists belts as well.

Karnataka does not face the Naxal problem, but according to officials, it acts as a safe hiding ground for them. After every major attack, Naxals move out of their bases and move to either Kerala or Karnataka.

Naxals have made efforts to set up base in the forests of Karnataka and Kerala after their force diminished in Andhra Pradesh. However, they have not been entirely successful. While the anti-Naxal force in Karnataka has been successful in eradicating the menace, the Naxals have not found much support from the locals who have realised that the Naxals are fighting a personal battle rather than a social cause for the tribals.

While Karnataka and Kerala can say with much pride that they have managed to keep the movement under check, they would however need to watch out for the ties that some agents of Pakistan's Inter Services Intelligence are trying to establish with the Naxals. According to the Intelligence Bureau, ISI agents both in Karnataka and Kerala have been trying to establish a close link with the Naxals since 2009.

The Karnataka police claim that they had managed to bust a network which was trying to establish links with the Naxals in 2010. A gang of six persons believed to be Naxals were picked up, and the allegation was that they were part of a team which was to set up a base with the help of the ISI which was operating through the underworld in the coastal Mangalore belt.

The underworld had paid off this Naxal gang Rs 25 lakh so that they could start setting up their base, but before their operation could commence, the gang was arrested.

There was yet another attempt to set up camp in Karnataka. This time around it was at Belthangady, near Mangalore. But the camp was raided and the Naxals had to flee. On investigation it was found that they were setting up a safe house for senior Naxal leaders. It was also found that they were planning on setting up more bases in Kerala, and during the raid the police had found pamphlets which spoke about the need for such a movement.

IB officials say that Karnataka and Kerala have an important role to play in curbing this menace. Andhra Pradesh has been a role model in curbing this menace and very recently, Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy sought the setting up of a corridor of road network all along the borders of the state to fight this menace.

Officials say that half the battle is lost if the top leadership is able to find safe hideouts in states not affected by the Naxals.

“There is a need to flush the leaders out of their safe hideouts since ignoring the problem only gives them time to regroup and plan their next attack,” says an official.