New Delhi: Following a massive wipeout operation launched by security agencies against Maoists in Left Wing Extremist (LWE) areas, the ultras have started looking for safe havens in other States.
Reports compiled by various security agencies have revealed that the Maoists have initiated a major game plan to make their bases in Assam.
“Several leaders of the outfits have been campaigning in Assam especially targeting the tea belts in the State,” said a senior official from the security establishment.
According to the official, the members of the outfit were actively propagating its ideology with the intent to mobilise people as part of a massive anti India conspiracy.
“Several of the Maoists leaders have already travelled to different parts of Assam. They have camped in the Barak Valley to revitalise and strengthen the Maoist network in the region. The accused were engaged in exploiting the socio-economic disparity to motivate the vulnerable sections of the society to carry out the nefarious agenda of CPI (Maoist) with the aim to disrupt the sovereignty and territorial integrity of India,” said a senior NIA official.
The official further said that the outfit has been utilizing the so-called socio-economic and political disparity that exists between Brahmaputra valley and Barak valley.
Barak valley consists of three administrative districts namely Cachar, Karimganj, and Hailakandi with 13 Assembly seats (earlier 15) following the delimitation exercise. Of the total 126 seats in the Assam Assembly, Brahmaputra valley has the maximum number of seats.
The premier anti-terror agency has also been investigating several cases related to Maoists.
In March 2022, NIA took over a case from Assam police after a few Maoists leaders were arrested by the State police from Assam’s Cachar district.
The case was originally registered by the Assam police following the arrest of two senior CPI(Maoist) leaders, namely Arun Kumar Bhattacharjee alias Kanchan Da alias Jyotish Da from Cachar.
“The geographical location of Assam attracted the Maoists to make their bases in the State. If they can, at all, make their base in the State, they will have easy access to several neighbouring countries including Bangladesh,” the official said.
It is worth mentioning that following directives from Home Minister Amit Shah to eliminate Maoists from the country by 2026, the security agencies have launched a massive wipeout operation against the ultras.
In a related development, the NIA on Tuesday searched multiple locations in various districts of West Bengal in a case involving a CPI (Maoist) conspiracy to revive its presence in the Eastern Regional Bureau area.
NIA teams conducted elaborate searches at the houses of suspects at a total of 11 locations in South 24 Pargana, Asansol, Howrah, Nadia and Kolkata districts of the state. According to the agency, the suspects were overground workers of CPI (Maoist) and were believed to have assisted the organisation’s commanders in carrying out Naxal activities.
“Today’s searches led to the seizure of several incriminating documents, electronic devices, pamphlets, magazines, and handwritten letters,” the agency said.
The case RC-01/2022/NIA/RNC relates to a conspiracy by the Polit Bureau/ Central Committee members, cadres and sympathisers of the banned terrorist organisation. The conspiracy is aimed at reviving, expanding and propagating the ideology of CPI (Maoist) in Jharkhand, Bihar, Chhattisgarh and other states in the northern and eastern regions of India, the NIA said.
A total of six accused, including CPI (Maoist) Polit Bureau members Prashant Bose and Pramod Mishra, and Central Committee Sabyasachi Goswami, have so far been arrested in the case, registered at NIA Police Station Ranchi in April 2022, under various sections of IPC and UA(P) Act.
Thirteen top CPI (Maoist) leaders were named in the FIR along with others.
