Chhattisgarh naxal attack: Why political corruption is also to blame

In 2010, when I was in Sukma to report on the massacre of 76 security personnel, I asked a senior IPS officer if it is true that the Maoists run a parallel government in many parts of south Chhattisgarh. “No that is absolutely incorrect. In fact, in many of these parts, they are THE government”, he replied with a straight face. He wasn’t off the mark. The heavily fortified police stations and CRPF battalions in Bastar do not convey a sense of the government’s power. Instead they tell you how scared, defensive and pushed to the backfoot they are. The only act of courage they display is to put up boards with the slogan Maowadi Murdabad inscribed on them outside the stations. [caption id=“attachment_815819” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representational image: AFP[/caption] Every day is luck by chance. If nothing untoward happens, it is only because the Maoists have perhaps taken a day off. But on Saturday, senior Congress leaders in Chhattisgarh paid a heavy price for the state’s inability to provide foolproof security cover when their Parivartan yatra cavalcade came under attack. Former Union minister VC Shukla was hit by three bullets while many other Congress leaders and policemen were killed in the daring attack. Anyone who understands Maoist tactics will tell you that you do not need specific intelligence inputs to know that you could be the target of an attack in what is referred to as the Red Corridor. Bastar is Maoist territory and it is not rocket science that unless the advance police party sanitises the area and secures the roads and hillocks, VIP movement will always be fraught with risk. Politicians of all hues face danger in the area, and with elections round the corner, it was obvious Maoists will try and register their presence. Mahendra Karma, the Congress leader who was the brain behind Salwa Judum - an anti-naxal movement by vigilante militia that started in 2006 - was the prime target. The Salwa Judum had managed to push back the naxals in many areas and police officers reckon that if the Supreme court had not stopped it in 2011, it could have cleaned up Bijapur and Dantewada of Maoist presence. It was in this patch that Maoists even had the audacity to collect toll tax, with `Chhattisgarh Sarkar’ not worth the paper it was printed on. Karma, a popular tribal leader, had escaped an attack on his life in November 2012 when Maoists triggered a landmine blast on his motorcade. Z-plus category security cover meant he was surrounded by a posse of cops which is why on Saturday, the Maoists galvanised hundreds of cadre to attack Karma and other Congress leaders. This time, they were clearly determined to take revenge on Karma. Nalin Prabhat, now IG (Operations) of the CRPF posted in Kashmir who led the force in Chhattisgarh describes Karma’s death as “the biggest loss in counter-Maoist efforts”. The state government has blood on its hands. Even though the denuded plateau between Sukma and Jagdalpur is not so much of a challenge to secure, the Chhattisgarh police’s lack of intent, lack of purpose and lack of strategy have been completely exposed by this attack. PCC chief Nand Kumar Patel was reported missing and it was suspected he may have been taken hostage. That could be a huge challenge to the government’s authority, both in Raipur and New Delhi. His dead body has now been reportedly found and the cold-blooded killing will mean the Raman Singh government will have to do some soul-searching and answer some tough questions. Incidentally, the Sukma Collector Alex Paul Menon was kidnapped by Maoists in April 2012 and released after 12 days in captivity. Clearly no lessons have been learnt from that episode. Frankly, the security force also is not up to the mark in combating the Maoists. “We can’t stop getting killed”, says a SP of Chhattisgarh police, conveying the desperation of the situation he and his men find themselves in and acutely aware of how far and how ineffectively his writ runs. A senior CRPF officer lets me into everything that is wrong with his organisation and the way it is being used in Chhattisgarh. “Everytime it is the same mistake of not following standard operating procedures. They don’t realise the Maoists have their eyes just about everywhere. They are noticing them. Their intelligence and courier network is better than ours. Can you imagine one of our parties had their lunch and dinner at the same place. When you are on an area domination mission, it is common sense that if you are taking the plains, you have to first secure and dominate the hilltops. In two of the recent cases, they failed to do so and were fired at by Maoists who had strategic positions on the hilltops.” The Congress has gone on a political offensive, calling for a bandh and demanding the imposition of President’s rule in the state. While expression of anger and anguish is justified and even understandable from a political outfit at election time, a hartal does not solve any problems. The political leadership - both the Congress at the Centre and the BJP in Chhattisgarh - has failed to handle the Maoist menace. It is no secret that political parties have survived by spot-fixing with the enemy and the political leadership has virtually thrown in the towel. The immediate reaction of the establishment is likely to be to rush in more forces and hope that more boots on the ground will keep the Maoists at bay. They should realise that it is the corruption indulged in by politicians and the tactics of the mining mafia that are giving Maoists the platform to represent the cause of the tribals. Fighting Maoism in Chhattisgarh as in other parts of the country isn’t a challenge only for the men in uniform. It is the men in white who have to get their hands dirty.