The Maoists' fresh offensive

DESARAJU SURYA
Hyderabad: The deadly attack by the outlawed CPI (Maoists) on CRPF and police personnel in Chattisgarh a few days ago was the first major offensive launched in accordance with its Politburo resolution of “carrying out tactical counter-offensives and various forms of armed resistance and inflicting severe losses to the enemy forces.”
The Maoists’ Politburo that met twice in the last one month had vowed to step up its offensive in the Dandakaranya region, Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, West Bengal and Maharashtra. It particularly singled out Chattisgarh for a “widespread, long-drawn and more bitter” battle “than the one against the British imperialist armies.”
While the first meeting of the Maoist Politburo was held on June 12 prior to the Centre’s ban on the outfit, the second meeting was held last week subsequent to the ban.
A copy of the latest Politburo resolution indicates that the Maoists have decided to launch a major “counter-offensive” strategy to defeat the Raman Singh government’s “intensified attack on the revolutionary movement.” The Rajnandgaon attack is seen as a first step in this direction.
The Maoists see a larger game plan in the acts of the Raman Singh government, with particular reference to the Maad region. They feel that the BJP government was out to suppress the revolutionary movement to promote capital investments by Americans in the region.
“Mittals, Tatas, Jindals, Essars and the like are offering huge funds for the suppression of the Maoists so as to swallow the entire mineral resources of the region without any hindrance. That is the rationale behind the proposed attack on Maad and the decision to create a blood-bath,” the Maoists’ Politburo pointed out.
“Maad is home to one of the oldest indigenous tribes known as Madia gonds, who have survived to this day preserving their way of life, culture and customs. The UPA government at the Centre and Raman Singh government in the state have drawn up a plan to create a reign of terror, burn and destroy tribal hamlets, and drive them out of the area to government-run camps as it had done in Dantewara and Bijapur. It is thus conspiring to vacate the Madia adivasis from the area thereby endangering the way of life, culture, customs and resources of one of the oldest surviving tribes of India,” it observed.
“To justify its proposed attack on Maad, the BJP government is propagating that Maad has become the military headquarters of the Maoists. The fascist Raman Singh government in the state, with the active assistance of the Congress-led UPA government at the Centre, had unleashed the notorious Salwa Judum by arming vigilante gangs since June 2005. And now it is itching to directly send police and Central forces into Maad and unleash similar terror in accordance with its policy of ‘Loot all, kill all and destroy all,’” the Politburo alleged.
A blue-print for a massive military offensive was prepared by the Centre for gaining an upper-hand over the Maoists. “The scanning of the entire area by satellites is almost on the verge of completion and the satellite images and the concrete topographical map of entire Maad will be ready soon. Based on this map -- complete with all hamlets, forest tracks, water points, etc. -- the police and Central forces will carry out their operations. They are also claiming that preparations are on to check the retreat of Maoist guerrillas into neighbouring areas in Jharkhand and Orissa,” the Politburo cautioned its cadres.
The Maoists are also wary of the fact that “never before was such a degree of coordination and cooperation achieved between the Centre and the states on the Naxal issue.”
“The warning signals are clear: the Maoists are fully geared up and will carry out their attacks with vigour. Going by their previous record, the Maoists will endeavour to implement the Politburo resolutions by all means and hence we should be prepared with a counter strategy,” a top police official involved in the anti-naxal operations remarked.