The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Vacuum at top for many naxal groups

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, May 11, 2005

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Vacuum at top for many naxal groups

Gollapudi Srinivasa Rao

WARANGAL: Though the threat from different naxal groups looms large in the district, strangely all major groups have lost their top leadership in a series of exchanges of fire from January.

The CPI (ML) Maoist, CPUSI, Janashakti, Prathighatana and Praja Prathighatana and Adivasi Liberation Tigers (ALT) lost their leaders heading the district and none of them has been replaced so far.

According to sources, the second-rung leaders were hesitating to head the organisations in view of increased repression and informer network of the police.

On January 29, the head of Khammam and Warangal district Prathighatana group, Bhupathi, lost his life along with Kondanna, heading the organisation of Warangal district at Bollepally in Tadvai mandal.

On March 19, the Janashakthi group lost its State committee member Manganna, in the Bhupalpalli forest area while the Maoists suffered a series blow when the party lost its Khammam-Warangal division committee secretary and senior worker, DVK Swamy alias Yadanna near Andugulameedhi hamlet in Venkatapur mandal.

On March 27, the State committee member of the Praja Prathighatana, D Kumaraswamy alias Venu was killed along with the founder and chief of ALT Ramu near Kambalapalli in Mahabubabad mandal. In an encounter that took place near Hyderabad city outskirts on April 27, the CPUSI lost its Warangal district committee secretary, Yadanna, and his wife, Swarupa, was also killed.

No announcement

Though the extremist groups act immediately in appointing heads to boost morale among its cadre, surprisingly, none of the groups made any announcement in this regard.

In the Maoist party, the sources said, the second-rung leaders were hesitating to fill the position of its slain leader DVK Swamy alias Yadanna.

The series of setbacks witnessed by the extremist groups, the improved information network of the police and waning public patronage to the naxals is slowly changing the face of Warangal district, once a stronghold of the naxal groups.

However, the threat still lurks as the peace is being perceived as `storm before calm'.

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