The Hindu : People's War leader arrested in West Bengal

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Dec 07, 2003

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People's War leader arrested in West Bengal

By Marcus Dam

Kolkata Dec. 6. Even as West Bengal, along with eight other States where naxalite groups are active, is working on an integrated action plan to tackle the problem that exists in varying degrees in each of these States, a top PW leader believed to have been instrumental in setting up the outfit's base in the State was arrested from the Salbani forest in the State's West Midnapore district today. He was wanted in 16 cases and has been eluding the police for five years.

What has made a co-ordinated inter-State plan of action against naxalites imperative are reports that extremist groups such as the PW and the MCC spread over these States are closing ranks, colluding with each other in planning out subversive activity in their areas of operation.Speaking to The Hindu, the State's Special IG (Headquarters), Narayan Ghosh, said that while the State administration was working in greater co-ordination with the other States, it has decided to set up additional police stations in the more vulnerable areas of West Bengal's three most affected districts along its south-western fringe to check the naxalite activity. One batallion of CRPF will be shortly deployed in the region. The police have also sought the assistance of the State's Forest Department in combing operations in the forest areas of West Midnapore, Purulia and Bankura districts where the militants are suspected to have their hideouts.

What is also worrisome were reports of naxals establishing links with disparate militant outfits such as the Kamtapur Liberation Organisation (KLO) in north Bengal and the ULFA in Assam, Mr. Ghosh said. The MCC that had bases in Bihar and Jharkhand was also suspected to have connections with the Maoists in Nepal.

Reports of a spurt in Maoist activity in the eastern districts of Nepal adjoining the country's border with West Bengal's Darjeeling district have heightened local security concerns. This is specially so following the first act of violence by the rebels in Nepal's eastern flank mid-last month when they attacked a border patrol of the Royal Nepal Army close to the Kakarvita thana just across the Indo-Nepal border and fled along the river Mechi river that separates Nepal and the plains of Darjeeling district.

According to the local police authorities though there was no specific report as yet of any infiltration of Maoist rebels into Darjeeling district that shares a 100 km-long border with Nepal the four police stations adjoining the border and 22 border outposts along it are in a state of high alert. A close watch is being kept on the villages adjoining the border for any suspicious movement of people by the district mobile task force set up specifically for the purpose.

The strength of Special Security Bureau forces deployed along the West Bengal-Nepal border has been recently raised from five to seven companies. The SSB along with the local police have regular meetings with representatives of the police of Nepal's border districts of Elam, Jhapa and Pantahar adjoining Darjeeling district.

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