India For Selective Assassination Of It’s Own Citizens?

By Trevor Selvam

31 January, 2010
Countercurrents.org

Recent statements from Indian leaders and police officers gives away the new strategy on the war on Naxalism. To make the movement "headless" by carrying out selective assassination of its leaders with the help of Israeli operatives

Plucky savvyness combined with unnecessary bravado has recently marked the attempts at media interface by some Maoist leaders. There are benefits to reap and a price to pay, as a result. On the one hand, it has been a long time coming for the Maoists to come out of their jungle bases and give press conferences, or invite selected correspondents to visit their bases under armed escort. They correctly understood that their political program (and not their military campaign only) needed to be promoted and publicized. They realized that innovative tactics needed to be implemented to popularize their struggles and their demands and acquire some mainstream presence. It took them a long time to also realize that when you wish to take on the state of India, that you must at least marginally capture the imagination of some of those who read papers, surf the net, hang out in cafes and do occasionally get agitated about issues of justice, honesty and righteousness. Such people cannot be ignored. In fact their chatter can eventually affect the mood of the nation. For too long the media in India has been significantly successful in disorienting, deflecting and mesmerizing the minds of urban folks into imagining a country that is not up to par because it is behind the West in so many ways. This state of stupor persists, but there is now an increasing awareness in some circles at least, that India’s postures about its growth, success and international stature can overnight become a hollow dream, if the word gets around that India has treated its first citizens with violence, deprivation, displacement and eventual genocide. The hollowness behind the growth figures, much of which has limited authenticity when seen in terms of the high current account deficit, high unemployment, incredible rise of prices, is also becoming evident even among the India- shining crowd. Despite all the bravado that Kamal Nath and Montek Ahluwalia indulge in, in Davos (after all they would all be seeking International jobs, very soon) the baseline figures of India’s economic progress are quite undermined with the phenomenal rise in poverty, illiteracy, infant malnutrition, farmer suicides and poor potable water facilities and sanitation related fatalities. It is an interesting development that one of the Government’s own bodies has declared that the assault on India’s tribals “is one of the largest land grabs since Columbus”, –that brigand, pirate and drunken sailor, who landed somewhere, near the Bahamas and declared he had found India.

Well, a section of India’s population-I daresay a large section– also needs to discover India. And, they are doing so. And it is because of that, there are some magazines on the net, and on print, that are taking the time to trek into the Naxalite bases and interview their leaders. Not everything is lost to the vacuous, hold the crotch, ape the West, get BPO-fever generation, MCed by the Shahrukh, Infosys, IPL and Kingfisher cultural nexus.

Initially, the Maoists’ planned to let some of their spokesperson come overground. This experiment failed, as the Governments of West Bengal (GWB) and India (GOI) wasted no time in slapping them with Unlawful Activities charges and put them in the slammer. No one talks about them anymore, other than the struggling Civil Liberties organizations. They are forgotten. Fortunately for the Maoists, there are a large number of academics and sympathetic journalists, ( as opposed to the band of poets, actresses and intellectuals who made a half hearted attempt to raise their voices on Lalgarh and then withdrew into their shells in no time at the first threats from the GWB) who have taken it upon themselves not to be intimidated and have spoken out in fairly clear terms both on TV and as well on the web and print media on the hypocrisy and superficiality of the mainstream media’s analysis (or extreme lack of it) in parroting the GOI’s and GWB’s mendacious piety about non-violence, abjuring arms, law and order and “foreign hand.”

In India, except for the alternate press and in most cases Tehelka, the media engages in sensationalist lies or they repeat the lies of the government and they get away with it. In India, an Inspector General of Police blatantly concocts lies about the wealth and assets of Chatradhar Mahato and also gets away with it, without anybody seeking litigation against spreading such falsehood. In India, the police go after the wives, husbands, children, brothers and sisters of those who are absconding or have launched cases against the police. In India, police chiefs openly boast about how to make a cold blooded execution look like an encounter and the Home Minister meets with those same experts to discuss democracy. In India, judges make pronouncements on corporate crime, based on whether it is good for India’s image or not! In India, an 80-year old woman’s breasts get chopped off and an 18-month old child’s fingers get lopped off by anti-Naxalite vigilantes and the press orders a martini with a twist and watches the sunset over Juhu.

Well, the Maoists have broken some ground in bringing to the surface the mess that lies below the pink obscenity that is the Indian parliament, where over one hundred and fifty criminally accused thugs occupy seats. The Maoists leaders have been audacious and dignified in giving interviews after much planning and deployment of their own security measures. It was necessary, because otherwise the Arnab Goswamis and the Barkha Dutts and their unapologetic clones were having a field day, dishing out report after report about the murderous Maoists, without analyzing what had been going on for several years, both at Abujhmarh and Lalgarh. For too long they were unable to convey their message to middle and upper class readers and net surfers about what they were fighting for. Now there is sudden mainstream discussion, on MOUs, Schedule 5 and 6, Abujmarh, Dantewada, Bastar and sites have sprung up all over the world that follow the Indian state’s war against its own people.

It is now time for the Maoists to take stock of the situation. The Indian state was caught off guard, both on the ground and in the airwaves. They sent in their khaki-pant wearing, Enfield rifle toting constables after the Maoists and they came back soon, pissing in their pants. Then they sent in their AK-47 and Insas-rifle toting para-military forces after the Maoists. They also have come back with their tails between their legs. Then they deployed Special Forces with reptilian and canine names like Cobra, Greyhound or some other fearsome moniker like Garudas. Their boats were sunk and their anti-mine vehicles were blown up and their helicopters beat a hasty retreat.

Enter the Israelis

It has been known for several years that India has acquired over 4,000 Galil 7.62 mm super sniper rifles, and night vision sights, laser range finders and other targeting equipment. This is not an infantry rifle, but the ammunition is the same as an Indian INSAS and an AK-47, purchased from Rumania. This is also all separate, of course from thermal imaging equipment, satellite transmission of such images and use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, better known as drones. All from Israel in the main. In fact India takes up more than 50% of Israel’s arms exports. It has also been known that India manufactures under license the Russian gas-fired, super sniper semi automatic Dragunov SVD59. Now comes the report of a special training session involving at least 30 top ranking officers who have just completed special training under "foreign" instructors. Nothing works in Indian media lingo than "foreign hand." But of course, in this case it does not matter, because the foreign hand is only for a good cause! These trainers are not bearded Jihadists or Asiatic desperadoes in the north east with Chinese made grenades. A report from the PTI states the following.

“Special task force to tackle Maoist insurgency”

Kolkata: The Maoist-infested states, including Jharkhand and Maharashtra, have set up a special task force in their bid to jointly tackle the Naxal problem, a senior West Bengal police officer said.

West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand, Chattisgarh, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and some other Maoist-hit states have selected 30 officers for the special task force to deal with the Maoist problem, he said.

The 30 selected officers had undergone a month-long training programme at Ghatsila in Jharkhand. Some foreign army officials, who have experience in tackling guerrilla warfare, also imparted them training, the police officer said.”

Mr. Chidambaram had one of his associates state recently in a press conference that the strategy of his initiative is to render the Naxalites "headless." In other words he stated very clearly, that the target is to eliminate the leaders of the Naxalites. As per the same report, “a highly placed official in the security establishment told IANS earlier this week, "We believe there could be around 50 such leaders scattered all over. We are targeting them to make the entire movement headless and make a serious dent," the official said. ”

In a special report cited by the BBC, the following was also stated by a security official, “So we are specifically targeting the Maoist leadership and you will see a lot of special operations based on specific intelligence."

The official said that "almost all the states are doing their bit, and that a special operation in West Bengal earlier this week – in which Maoist military wing chief Koteswara Rao narrowly escaped arrest – was a good example of that. ”

It is significant that Ms. Mamata Banerjee, the Central Minister and self-appointed Bengal-saver, (and stand-up comedian, live theatre activist who attempted suicide with a black shawl and danced on JP Narayan’s car) and who one walked in lock-step with LK Advani, was ready to beg and plead to the Naxalites to come and negotiate with her. She must be in on Mr. Chidambaram’s deadly game plan.

She also knows that by the time of the next polls in West Bengal, if she cannot make a settlement in the continuously expanding Naxalite terrain, she will have a hard time putting up candidates to fight the CPI(M) . She wants to make a deal with the Maoists, while all along claiming that they do not exist! She is a mockery of her own self and a pivotal Quasimodo for PCC.

Selective assassination

Selective assassination, use of UAVs, missile attacks on selected homes and sniper fire has been a hallmark of the Israeli Mossad and Defence forces, not only in Gaza and the West Bank, but also in different parts of the world including South America, Iran and Europe. For the past several years it is now well-known that India has entered into very close collaboration with the IDF and over 32 non-disclosure arms and security agreements have been signed with them. The Mossad has titillated gun-and ammo freaks and underhanded counter-insurgency nutjobs with their secretive killing techniques. Assassination and murder that goes undocumented, un-prosecuted and never brought to light, when the Mossad is involved. The CIA fumbles, trips and gets blown up. Not the Mossad. That is why India has chosen them to deploy dirty tricks on India’s citizens. Perhaps, Mr. Chidambaram would like to take out the Maoists leaders one by one and he has realized that it will not happen by sending in 100,000 troops and anti-mine trucks or IAF helicopters. So the next tactic is to walk away from the roads and get special forces trained to go into the jungles and “live there like guerillas” and seek the Maoists in their hideouts. Therefore high power sniper rifles, night vision sights have become necessary. The "headless" statement should be studied carefully. I am wondering if it is actually code word for carrying out assassinations.

The report went on to further state the following: "The force would be named soon and it will be pressed into action as and when the training programme is completed," Director General of Police of West Bengal Bhupinder Singh told PTI.

"More officers would be recruited to strengthen the force after the completion of the training of the first batch," the DGP said.

They were given training on how to use highly sophisticated weapons and taught the technique to detect explosives, he said. They were also told how to survive in deep forest areas for longer period of time, the officer said. The main objective of the force will be to stay in forest areas near the base camps of the Maoists and to gather detailed information about their activities and their strength, Singh said.”

It would be propitious of these Maoist leaders not to fall into the traps being laid out by the security forces.

Chhatradhar Mahato responds to Mamata Banerjee

Source: Sanhati

[Recently, Mamata Banerjee, the Trinamool Congress supremo, had offered to mediate negotiations between the agitating adivasis of Lalgarh and the government. In response, Chhatradhar Mahato, the imprisoned leader of People’s Committee Against Police Atrocities (PCAPA), wrote an open letter from jail, which was published in the Bengali daily newspaper Pratidin. A translated version of the letter is published below.]

I saw in the newspapers that you have organised a press conference and declared: “who is Chhatradhar?”. Also, you have accused me of being corrupt. I don’t regret that you don’t know who Chhatradhar is, but you are certainly answerable for saying that I am corrupt. Prior to this, the DG of the state spread stories about my possessing crores of rupees and owning houses in different places and now have shut up. Now you too have said so. Fine. I now request you to tell the public what acts of corruption I have committed and where. I see that at the same time you have expressed a desire to unleash the armed forces. I don’t know whether you remember the bone-chilling screams of our mothers in Manipur: the Indian Army raping them. So, our mothers and sisters in Jangalmahal got extremely concerned with these talks about deploying the army. I fear that the bone-chilling screams of our mothers in Manipur might be echoed in Jangal Mahal, the breeze through the Shaal and Mahul forests will get poisoned. I pray that this wish of yours is never fulfilled.

Maoist leader rejects talks offer in an open letter to Mamata Banerjee

Kishanji, leader of Maoists, has rejected the Trinamool Congress chief’s offer to facilitate peace talks with the Centre if they lay down arms, and said only unconditional talks are acceptable to them.

In an open letter to Mamata Benerjee, he listed a host of demands concerning development in tribal areas, special economic zones, violence perpetrated by political parties and corruption in disbursal of government funds.

At a rally in West Bengal’s Jhargram town on January 15, Ms. Banerjee urged the Maoists to shun violence to pave the way for dialogue within seven days.

Replying, Kishanji said: “The Communist Party of India (Maoist) will never consent to dialogue after laying down arms at the behest of the Centre or any State government or any political party. The Maoists do not trust the current parliamentary system and laying down arms is not on our agenda.”

Accusing the Trinamool of perpetrating violence like the CPI(M) throughout the State, he said the Maoists “do not commit even a minuscule proportion of that violence.”

Reacting to Ms. Banerjee’s announcement that she would hold processions in Maoist-affected areas if the ultras failed to meet the deadline, Mr. Kishanji said: “If she can come to Jangalmahal [forested southwestern parts of the State] without police cover, she is welcome.”

He criticised Ms. Banerjee for slamming the Maoists one day and trying to pacify them the next day. “The manner and language in which Mamata didi attacked us at a press conference make us doubt her call for peace.”

Meanwhile, a CPI (M) activist was killed by suspected Maoists in the Lalgarh area late on Sunday. Guhiram Singh, member of the party local committee at Chandabila, was abducted from his home at Kadukata village by a group of armed men, taken to a nearby forest and shot dead. Maoist posters found at the spot claimed that the Singh was killed for corruption. The Hindu

Lalgarh: 74 people belonging to APDR & Bandi Mukti Morcha detained

The police have arrested 68 “intellectuals” marching to Lalgarh from Kharagpur station on Sunday for violating Section 144 but refrained from slapping non-bailable charges on them despite claiming they were carrying “seditious” pamphlets exhorting people to back Maoists.

Sources in the police said it was initially decided to press for non-bailable charges against the detainees but there was a last-minute change in the decision when writer Mahasweta Devi called up top state officials advising against it.

One of the posters that the “intellectuals” were carrying read: “To combat the challenge against the state by the people of Lalgarh, the state has started a war against them with its DOGS, lathi, guns, poisonous gas, rape and several other state-sponsored weapons. Please come and join these rebels and proceed towards Lalgarh to release it from the police by breaking Section 144.”

The poster, published on January 18, 2010 at Ruby Printing Press at 18, Surya Sen Street in Kolkata, mentioned the names of Sukhendu Bhattacharya and Jagabandhu Adhikari as publishers.

Another poster had a poem written by renowned poet Joy Goswami. “If we do not awake now and stay at home instead of joining the people in Lalgarh, we, all artistes, are mass-murderers,” it said.

Around 76 “intellectuals” started marching from Kharagpur station to Lalgarh on Sunday, chanting slogans they will walk down to Lalgarh and break Section 144. Among the 68 arrested are Rangta Munshi of APDR, Choton Das, secretary, Bandi Mukti Committee, professor Pranab Dasgupta, member of ADPR, Sukhendu Bhattcharya, convener of Lalgarh Sanhati Mancha, and scientist Meher Engineer.

Sources said senior police officials had initiated the process to invoke the non-bailable Section 123 of IPC against the detainees, but had to retreat after Mahasweta Devi reportedly called up Home Secretary Ardhendu Sen, asking him to lift the non-bailable sections.

“We invoked Section 123 against the intellectuals as the contents of the posters were completely seditious. Initially, we even got the permission for the same but after a few minutes, we were asked by the higher authorities not to press non-bailable charges,” said a senior police officer.

DGP Bhupinder Singh said, “We at first thought of invoking non-bailable section. But after examining the contents, we thought a bailable section will do.”

Rangta Munshi, however, said: “We had no intention to violate Section 144. The police conspired against us and arrested us so that we cannot join the people of Lalgarh.” IE

Tribals clash with police at Kalinga Nagar

By Amulya Kumar Pati
Jajpur, Jan. 19: Angry tribals today clashed with the police near Rohit Ferrotech plant in Kalinga Nagar industrial complex area in Jajpur district to protest against the construction of a new road, officials said.

Two persons were detained by police in this connection and they were being interrogated, they added.

The trouble began when about 500 tribals in their traditional attire and weapons, including women and children, gathered at Baligotha under Kalinga Nagar police station limits to prevent resumption of road work, stalled since January 16 following their protest.

The police had to fire about 300 rubber bullets and blank firing in the air to disperse the tribals, the sources said.

In retaliation, the protesters, said to be the supporters of Visthapan Virodhi Janamanch (VVJ), pelted stones and mounted arrow attack on policemen deployed in the area.

However, six tribals sustained minor injuries in the brief clash, sources said.

Thirteen platoons of armed police personnel have been deployed in the area to prevent further flare up.

“We are constructing Common Corridor Road (CCR) while some people opposed us, leading to the clash,” said Kalinga Nagar Additional District Magistrate (ADM), Ranjit Keshari Mohanty.

We have been requesting the protestors to receive their land related dues if any left with the Government. But, they are not paying any heed to our requests, he said.

Construction work of CCR, being carried out by the state owned company IDCO, had been stopped following protest by tribals, officials said adding the corridor would connect Military Road and Express highway.

“Though tension prevails in the area, the situation is under control,” Jajpur Superintendent of Police D.S. Kuttey said.

Both Jajpur SP and Kalinga Nagar ADM with 13 platoons of armed police personnel have been camping at the site.

The Janamanch, which has been opposing the industrialisation in the area, alleged that the authorities were trying to construct the road forcibly on his personal land.

“The administration at the behest of Tata Steel company is forcibly constructing road over our private lands. We will oppose this illegal and forcibly construction tooth and nail,” said Rabindra Jarika, Secretary of the Janamanch.

“We will not be displaced and also not allow any displacement in the area,” Jarika added.

The Janamanch has been opposing the industrialisation in the area since Jan 2, 2006 police firing incident in which 14 tribals were killed and many were injured when police opened fire on hundreds of tribals who were opposing forcible construction of a boundary wall by Tata Steel for their proposed six-million-tonne steel plant project.

In Chhattisgarh, jail is the cost of filing a public interest litigation plea

The mystery surrounding the killing of nine Adivasis in Gompad village in Dantewada district in October last year is deepening, with the Chhattisgarh police detaining three more witnesses to the incident and restricting all access to the area on the pretext of Operation Green Hunt.

Operation Green Hunt is a catch-all phrase, used by the police and media alike, for all major anti-naxal offensives since July 2009.

Total control

As previously reported by The Hindu, the Chhattisgarh police have assumed total control over the movements of Sodi Sambho – one of several witnesses in a Supreme Court petition that alleges that the 9 civilians were killed by the security forces.

On Friday, armed policemen and Special Police Officers (SPO) lined the length of the highway from Dantewada town to Konta, the block headquarters closest to Gompad, stopping vehicles and questioning commuters. Travelling with local journalists Anil Mishra of Nayi Duniya and Yashwant Yadav of Navbharat, this correspondent was repeatedly detained along the route and told that Gompad village was out of bounds as a major anti-naxal operation was underway. Non-journalists were, however, let through.

Concerned that we might enter the village from Andhra Pradesh, we were detained by SPOs for about 45 minutes on the Chhattisgarh-A.P. border and allowed to proceed only after the intervention of Deputy Inspector-General, Dantewada, S.R.P. Kalluri.

At present, the police have refused to comment on the veracity of the claims made in the Supreme Court petition filed by Sodi and others. “The Superintendent of Police of Dantewada has been told to initiate an enquiry into the Gompad incident,” said T.J. Longkumer, Inspector-General Police, Bastar.

However, witnesses to the killings insisted in interviews to The Hindu that the police were involved in the early morning ‘sanitisation operation’ and killed nine villagers (seven from Gompad and two from nearby villages), including three women and a 12-year-old girl. “The police also cut off the fingers of a two-year-old infant,” said one witness speaking on condition of anonymity fearing police retribution. “The police stabbed Madavi Venka [a victim] and then shot him fatally,” said another witness, “All those killed were innocent villagers with no involvement with the naxals.”

The witnesses were interviewed, via a translator, at a weekly bazaar at Adralpalli on the Andhra Pradesh side of the border between the two States. Due to the police cordon around Gompad village, witness reports could not be verified independently.

The villagers also claimed that the police have detained Soyam Rama, Soyam Dulla and Kattam Dulla, three witnesses whose testimonies could prove crucial when the case comes up for hearing in the Supreme Court. “All three men have been held at the police station at Konta for the last one week,” said a Gompad villager. The Adivasis were picked up by the police in the first week of January when they came to Dantewada town for a public airing of grievances, the villagers said, an assertion DIG Kalluri contests. “We have never detained these three men,” he said. “They have never been taken into police custody.”

However, police sources speaking to The Hindu on background confirmed that the three men were indeed held “for questioning” at the Konta police station till January 14 but could not confirm their current location. At present, their whereabouts are unknown.

Yet to be addressed

Police control over witnesses and restrictions on the movement of the press have raised concerns that the facts surrounding the Gompad killings might never be known. In another PIL petition pending before the Supreme Court for the past three years, allegations of large-scale killing of Adivasis and arson by the Salwa Judum and security forces have yet to be addressed. The Hindu

India: Police Suppression Drives Orissa Tribals into Maoist Arms

Revolution in south Asia Posted by Ka Frank on January 17, 2010

CMAS mobilizes in Narayanpatna

This article was published in Asia Times on January 16, 2010

India drives tribals into Maoist arms

By Sudha Ramachandran

KORAPUT, Orissa – Six weeks after police action in Narayanpatna in Koraput district in the eastern state of Orissa left two tribals dead and scores of others injured, tension here shows no signs of abating. Arbitrary arrests of tribals continue with about 109, including at least 12 children, thrown in jail so far on charges that include criminal conspiracy, rioting, sedition and waging war against the state – and police and paramilitary forces have stepped up operations to hunt down activists of the Chasi Mulia Adivasi Sangha (CMAS), a tribal rights organization active in the area.

The CMAS activists have retreated deep into the forests, where they are said to be regrouping. “The hunt for CMAS activists and the intimidation of tribals by the police has forced tribals to seek refuge in the surrounding forests, which are Maoist hideouts,” a senior official in Koraput told Asia Times Online. “By their actions, the police are pushing the tribals to turn Maoist.”

This is the case not just in Narayanpatna but also across villages and towns in India’s tribal areas in Orissa, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Bengal and Andhra Pradesh. Police atrocities against tribals are fueling support for the Maoists.

The Youngest Maoist, two years old Madvi Mukesh nabbed!

Source: Just Be

Breaking news! Youngest Maoist nabbed!

Check out the murderous rage on his face!

Check out the hand that has bludgeoned many heads!

Check out the strained forehead that explain his years committed to bloodshed!

© Javed Iqbal

When Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh referred to Maoists as being the “single largest threat to the nation”, did he mean this child, whose fingers were brutally chopped off while his family was massacred?

Now, even before this ‘Maoist’ could be sent in for a narco-analysis, let’s understand where he comes from.

Name: Madvi Mukesh
Age: Two years old
Tribe: Muria
Residence: Gompad village, police station Konta, district Dantewada (on the Chhattisgarh-Andhra Pradesh border)
Family: Maternal grandfather Madvi Barjar (50) – dead; grandmother Madvi Subhi (45) – dead; mother Kartam Kunni (20) – dead; maternal aunt Madi Mooti (8) – dead; father (21).

Mukesh was with his family on the morning of October 1, 2009, when something unusual happened. Several men wearing military fatigues – SPOs (special police officers), police and other security forces – pointed their guns at these ‘Maoists’ and shot at them. Mukesh’s neigbours were killed – Muchaki Handa, Markam Deva, Tomra Mutta, newly-married couple Soyma Subba and Soyam Jogi.

Mukesh’s family was wiped out. He was found to be crying near a pool of blood, oozing from the chopped body of his aunt. His wails were uncontrollable – did he understand the meaning of the loss of his family, or was it because his three fingers were chopped during the carnage?

His ‘Maoist’ father wasn’t at home at that time. He was saved.

Houses were burnt down. Paddy, pulses, brass pots, poultry and cash were taken away. In all, the villagers found that 10 of their people were dead. Some youths were missing. Mukesh Madvi, the ‘Maoist’, disappeared into the jungles with his father.

About 200 kms north of Gompad, news about an encounter was being circulated in the press. Operation Green Hunt had officially begun on October 1, 2009, and it was declared that some Maoists were killed near the Andhra border. When questions were raised by some sceptical journalists about the bodies of the Maoists, they were told that the villagers had disposed them off.

On January 3, 2010, when I met Amresh Mishra, Superintendent of Police (SP) of Dantewada, and had asked him about the Gompad massacre, he clarified that it wasn’t a massacre. “There was only a firing from both the sides. There was no casualty; only some explosives were found.”

January 7, 2010, would have been the day when, like Mukesh, many other ‘Maoists’ would have come to Dantewada for a Jan Sunwai (public hearing), so that they could put forth their case. Home Minister P Chidambaram had promised Himanshu Kumar of Vanvasi Chetna Ashram, who had planned the Jan Sunwai, that he would be present to hear the unending woes of the people. However, the Governor of Chhattisgarh ESL Narasimhan prevented the Home Minister from making that visit. The Jan Sunwai was bound to have opened a can of worms before the national media, if the Home Minister had attended the meeting.

Mukesh did arrive for the Jan Sunwai along with his father, and several other optimists, on January 5. They were about 25 of them. No sooner did they arrive at Vanvasi Chetna Ashram, they were surrounded by SPOs. About 30 minutes later, they were all packed into three Boleros which bore no number plates.

It has been 10 days since those ‘Maoists’ were taken to an undisclosed location and there has been no news about them.

© Javed Iqbal

So that is the government’s definition of a ‘Maoist’, whom I encountered personally – the tribal carrying logs of firewood who starts walking through jungles since 3 am, and reaches the nearest town by 7 am, to sell the firewood for Rs 60. The tribal who walks about 50 kms to reach the police station, to complain that the forces stationed in his village killed the only hen that he had, is a Maoist for the government. The two-year-old Suresh is a Maoist for the government.

The India’s Inhuman Gunmen

By Gladson Dungdung

Jharkhandmirror.org

11 January, 2010

Police torture

When the people of the entire world were greeting to each other, bursting crackers and enjoying delicious food on the occasion of the new year 2010, the police of Chhatarpur, Town and Sadar police stations of Palamu district, (which is the most Maoist infested area according to the government and the media reports) in Jharkhand, were very much engaged in humiliating, torturing and beating to Rajendra Yadav of Telaria village (Chhatarpur) alleging him as a Naxalite without any proof, which led to his death. He had been illegally detained in the police custody for more than 60 hours. The police justified it saying, “Since the Maoists had planted landmines on the road therefore Rajendra Yadav was not taken to the court.” Interestingly, the police did not recover any landmine from the spot therefore one can see it as an attempt to bury the inhuman acts of the Indian’s inhuman gunmen.

According to Dashrath Yadad, the father of Rajendra Yada, his son was taken under the custody by the police of Chhatarpur police station in the morning on December 30, 2009. On the next day, he went to Chhatarpur police station for inquiring about his son and the police told him that his son was sent to the office of the Superintendent of Police (SP). Thereafter, he immediately rushed to the SP’s office where he did not find his son and returned home with the empty hand. On 1st January, Dashrath Yadav came to know about the detention of his son in Town Police station and subsequently, he reached to the police station at 3’O clock in the afternoon. He was shocked to see Rajendra, who was suffering from terrible pain and not even able to speak clearly. Dashrath Yadav went back to home after painful experience. In the early morning on January 2, the police informed him about the death of his son, which was not unexpected.

Protest against CISF camp:10 hurt in jawan attack

OUR CORRESPONDENT
The protesters at Kute village on Wednesday. Picture by Hardeep Singh

Ranchi, Jan. 13: At least 10 people sustained injuries when Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) jawans lathicharged a mob protesting against a proposal to set up a CISF camp at Kute village in Jagannathpur today.

The incident took place around 8.30am when the villagers assembled after having information of uprooting a Sarna flag they had put on the proposed site to restrain CISF officials from starting the work.

The injured were admitted to HEC Plant Hospital with injuries on heads and legs. But they were reported out of danger. Darshan Mahto, Santosh Mahto, Nepal Baitha and Jeetwa Oroan, who led the mob, were identified among the injured persons.

Is Mittal Our God? By Gladson Dungdung

http://save-adivasis.blogspot.com/ –         www.jharkhandmirror.org

15 January, 2010

On 8 January, 2010, the media (forth realm of the democracy) reported us that the global steel giant Arcelor Mittal Company is all set to desert the state of Jharkhand and Orissa, where the company is not yet able to acquire land for its proposed mega steel plants because of the Adivasis’ protest against the land acquisition. On the next day, a leading daily of Jharkhand came up with a ‘special page’ on Mittal company apart from the auspicious front page story, which concludes with the final verdict “the God is ready to desert Jharkhand”. Of course, the story is not new as the Jharkhandi media carry out this kind of biased reports for the corporate houses regularly.

In fact, when there is any kind of news in favour of the corporate houses, it always gets space in the front page but when the news is against of the corporate interest; it is either reported in unnoticeable manners or did not carried out at all. Ironically, it has been repeatedly done by the forth pillar of democracy, which is expected to be unbiased for the sake of democracy. As far as the Mittal Company is concerned, the media have always played a biased role. In July 2006, when L.N. Mittal the owner of the Arcelor Mittal Company had announced for its departure to the state of Orissa and played a dirty game for pressurizing the state government, the media told us the same thing that the ‘God is leaving the state’. The relevance questions are – Is Mittal our God? Are we incomplete without him and does Mittal really care about us?

The media houses have been attempting to coin L.N. Mittal as our (Jharkhandi people) god since the MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) was signed between the company and the Jharkhand government on October 8, 2005. The company has proposed for setting up a mega steel plant with the capacity of 12 million tones per annum at an estimated investment of Rs 40,000 crore. In addition to the steel plant, it has also proposed to set up a 2500 megawatt mega power plant and mining projects in the state. The company requires 25,000 acres of land and 20,000 unit water per hour for the mega steel plant and a township in Torpa-Kamdara region of Khunti and Gumla district. According to the original plan, the steel plant was to come up by the end of 2009 and the production would begin from 2012. Consequently, there would be a mass displacement as 256 villages would be affected therefore the Adivasis are protesting against it.

However, the right from the beginning the media houses are playing a dubious role. The newspapers regularly reported that the company requires only 12 thousand acres of land and would provide job to 1 lack people in the state. The same newspapers are now reporting that the company requires 25 thousand acres of land for the plant, where 50 thousand people will get the jobs. The newspapers never report us that how the Mittal company has suppressed its own employees and thrown them out of the jobs when the company was in loss. A question comes to my mind is how can L.N. Mittal become our God who did not even spend a pie for India (which he claims as his own country) without self interest in his lifetime?

The Arcelor Mittal Company operates in 60 countries across the world and it has plants in 20 countries. In 2009, the company deserted thousands of its own employees across the globe. The demand of company’s steel had gone down to10 percent and its share fell down by 7 percent. The company had to cut production in Canada by 45 percent and axed 9,000 employees. It also cut the job of 1000 employees in lowest cost plant in Poland and shut down one out of its two blast furnaces in west Belgium. The Company was in the process to idle a plant in East Chicago and lay off another 400 workers. The company had total workforces of 3,26,000 which was cut down to 3,15,867 consequently, 10,133 people lost their jobs in the company by the end of October, 2009. Hence, the company has failed in protecting the rights of its own employees. In these circumstances, how can it give us the guarantee of jobs security in India and why our media do not bother to inform us about it? Do media run on coverage package of Mittal?

Obviously, the Mittal Company has either purchased the media or influence in some other ways, which is of course resulting in the media’s exaggeration, manufacturing the consent and convincing people in favour of the company. The media exaggerated Mittal’s entry as a great achievement for the state and when the company threatened repeatedly to leave the state, the media coined it as the sky is going to fall in Jharkhad. The announcement of ITI was also projected as it would change the fate of the Adivasis. It was coined in such a manner that without Mittal, Adivasis of the region are beasts, uncivilized and sub-human. Finally, the CSR was propagated as it will change the fate of Jharkhand in over night. All these were done in complete planned manner to get the land by projecting Mittal as Messiah of Jharkhand therefore now when he has announced of shifting the project to the state of Karnata, the media keep telling us that the God is about to desert us therefore we should go to him, plead for not to leave us and surrender our ancestral lands for his steel plant.

Indeed, the Indian democracy is run by the corporate houses and the media is part of it. As far as the people especially the marginalized are concerned, they have only right to vote, which is also snatched by the threat of money, muscle and manipulation power. Of course, the corporate houses were not our god, they are not our god and they will never be our god. If they leave the state, we have nothing to lose but the politicians, who get huge money to buy the votes. However, the recent breaking news on ‘coverage package’ is the best example of how the forth realm of democracy is also on sale and betrays its own people. Should we still believe on the Media? If the media go on like this, we would have only choice to tell is ‘the media is of the corporate, for the corporate and by the corporate. Meanwhile, we are hopping that the Mittal also comes up with his own media house to manipulate the Adivasis’ lands but even after that he will never be our god.

Gladson Dungdung is a Human Rights Activist and Writer from Jharkhand. He can be reached at gladsonhractivist

An Open Letter To The Prime Minister of India From People’s Union for Democratic Rights, PUDR- Chhatisgarh

An Open Letter To The Prime Minister

‘There is an undeclared emergency in operation in Dantewada — people are being denied access to the area and information, detained illegally, implicated in false cases, threatened, tortured and killed’.

People’s Union for Democratic Rights (PUDR)

Dear Mr Prime Minister

With great dismay we want to bring to your notice the rapid breakdown of constitutional order in Chhattisgarh since November 2009. You must be aware that since the year 2005, the Dantewada district of this state has witnessed intensified conflict between state and the CPI (Maoist). In course of this conflict, more than 600 villages have been uprooted leading to forced displacement of lakhs of adivasis. The Chhattisgarh administration has also enlisted the support of the controversial Salwa Judum ‘andolan’ to counter the CPI (Maoist), besides appointing thousands of Special Police Offices (SPOs). The sequence of events since November 2009 underlines a comprehensive breakdown of the rule of law and pulverization of democratic space in Chhattisgarh. We therefore urge you to take note of the following:

The Case of Sodi Sambo
• On October 1, 2009, there was an alleged incident of killings by police and SPOs in Gompad village, Dantewada, described by the district SP as an ‘encounter’ to a broad based fact finding team including the Peoples Union for Democratic Rights (PUDR, Delhi) and the Peoples Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL, Chhattisgarh), Action Aid and Vanvasi Chetna Ashram (Dantewada) etc. Sodi Sambo is one of the victims and witnesses of the Gompad killings and a petitioner in Writ Petition (Criminal) No. 103 of 2009 in the Supreme Court.
• On January 3, 2010, when Sambo was on her way to Delhi for treatment of her leg which had been shot, she was taken away by the police. This despite the fact that Sambo is innocent and faces no criminal charges/despite the police declaration that there are no charges against her.
• On January 5, the police informed the press that SP Dantewada had received a complaint from some “relative” of Sambo that Himanshu Kumar of VCA had ‘abducted’ Sambo. Significantly, Himanshu Kumar is petitioner no.1 in the writ petition filed against the Dantewada police, in the Supreme Court.
• On January 6, the PUCL and PUDR filed an application in the Supreme Court that the Petitioner No. 13 in the Criminal Writ Petition No. 103 of 2009, Sodi Sambo, was being intimidated to coerce her into withdrawing her petition. The petition prayed that she be permitted to come to Delhi to continue her treatment at the St. Stephens Hospital and that the state bears her expenses for the same. All this while, Sambo was kept in a hospital in Jagdalpur where the treatment required for her leg was not available. Even the journalists from Indian Express and Tehelka were prevented from meeting her.
• On January 7, the Supreme Court ordered the State of Chhattisgarh to not prevent Sodi Sambo from travelling to Delhi for medical treatment at St. Stephens Hospital at her own cost. The National Alliance for People’s Movement (NAPM) team met the SP Dantewada so they could meet and escort Sambo to Delhi. They were brusquely told not to interfere and that the Petitioner Organization, PUCL or others will not be permitted to have any role in this regard. The model argument for denying access to her has been that as a witness, she needs to be protected from anybody influencing her. Ironically, Sambo is being ‘protected’ by the same police that she alleges are responsible for her injuries. Sambo has now been shifted to AIIMS in Delhi by the Chhattisgarh government. Sambo’s lawyer has also not been allowed to meet her. Why is the Chhattisgarh government so wary of anybody meeting Sambo? Is it because she is a witness to the state’s excesses on adivasis which has been continuously going on for the past four years?

Targeting of Vanvasi Chetna Ashram

• We would also like to bring to your notice the reprehensible harassment of civil rights and democratic spaces, like the Vanvasi Chetna Ashram (VCA), in Chattisgarh. The VCA, led by Gandhian Himanshu Kumar, has been raising and documenting the atrocities on innocent adivasis by state forces on the pretext of fighting Naxals in Dantewada. Himanshu had planned a padyatra beginning December 14, 2009, to be followed by a saytagraha and a jan sunvai (public hearing), for which Home minister P.Chidambaram had agreed to come. He was denied permission for the padyatra and satyagraha in Dantewada. A national team of women traveling to participate in the programme were stopped in Raipur, humiliated and finally not allowed to reach Dantewada. On December10, 2009 (Human Right Day), one of the VCA’s main activists, Kopa Kunjam, was picked up along with lawyer Alban Toppo. While Alban was let off after some beating, Kopa was slammed with murder charges and still languishes in jail. Another VCA activist, Sukhnath, has been falsely implicated and booked under Chhattisgarh Special Public Security Act (CSPSA). Earlier in May, 2009, VCA premises were demolished bypassing legal procedures. VCA was asked to vacate the rented accommodation as the landlord was under pressure from the administration to do so. The VCA has now been blacklisted by the Chhattisgarh administration.

Rape and Intimidation of Women of Samsetti Village

• Four adivasi girls from Samsetti village, Sukma block of Dantewada, were raped by Special Police Officers (SPO) two years ago. The issue was brought to light by the magazine Tehelka and Himanshu Kumar’s sustained efforts helped registration of a rape case in Bilaspur High Court in March 2009, even as the police refused to file FIRs. These women were picked up by the same SPOs when their cases were to come up for hearing in the courts on December, 10. They were beaten, illegally kept at the police station for five days and their thumb imprints taken on a blank sheet to say that Himanshu Kumar had pressurized them to level false charges of rape.
Obstructing rights’ groups, researchers and journalists from functioning in the state

• Two Professors from Delhi University, Nandini Sundar and Ujjwal Kumar Singh who were in Dantewada from December 29-31, 2009, were surrounded and trailed by armed SPOs throughout their visit. Hotel owners denied them lodging at the behest of the Chhattisgarh government and the Dantewada police.
• On January 5, 2010 Satyen Bordoloi and Priyanka Borpujari, journalists from Bombay who had been highlighting violations by the state and the VCA’s struggles in the print and electronic media, Suresh Deepala, law student and AID volunteer from Hyderabad, and Nishtha, a student of Tata Institute of Social Sciences, who were visiting Himanshu for the jan sunwai, were surrounded by 25 armed police and SPOs and prevented from leaving. They were assaulted and their cameras taken away.
• On January 6, activists from NAPM including Medha Patkar and Sandeep Pandey were assaulted by a mob brought in from Kasauli Relief Camp by an organization called Maa Danteshwari Swabhiman Manch, essentially a new version of Salwa Judum. Eggs and sewage were thrown at the delegation. 25 to 30 adivasis who still dared to come for the Jan Sunvai were also stopped, harassed and intimidated by the police.
There is an undeclared emergency in operation in Dantewada where people are being denied access to the area and information, detained illegally, implicated in false cases, threatened, tortured and killed. The Home Minister, Mr. P. Chidambaram was apprised of the problems but he has chosen to remain silent for in the war against Naxals, everything seems fair to him. We would therefore like you to ponder and answer if the tribal people of Dantewada are not citizens of this country? Are they not supposed to have a say in the development of this country? Why are they expected to keep quiet as their resources, livelihoods and lives are snatched away to benefit a few? How fair is the state’s strategy of displacing them and handing over their natural resources to private corporations? Can all opposition, including peaceful, Gandhian protests, to state policies be declared Naxalite and thereby brushed aside? And finally, can we in the name of fighting Naxalism put democracy and our constitution to peril and is this the only answer that a state worthy of calling itself a democracy has to such challenges?

It has also come to our knowledge that the combing operation in Chhattisgarh has begun and security forces have entered the jungles from Konta, the southernmost part of Chhattisgarh. This could not have been done without the knowledge and approval of the Home Ministry. It should also be noted that ‘Operation Greenhunt’ against Maoists was disowned by your government but what we are seeing is its surreptitious continuation without an official name. As the Prime Minister of this country, we hope you will break your silence and accept responsibility for the wrongs being committed in Chhattisgarh and take immediate action to restore constitutional freedoms in the state.

Sincerely
People’s Union for Democratic Rights, PUDR

Source –
http://outlookindia.com/
www.pudr.org