JOIN USMaoists raise Rs 2,500 crore
The corpus, raised largely through extortion, ransom and other coercive methods in eight states over the past one and a half year, has enabled the Maoists to keep the security forces engaged in fierce gun battles in the so-called “red territories,” a report of the Intelligence Bureau circulated among the home departments of West Bengal, Orissa, Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu has revealed.
Quoting the report, informed sources said a portion of the corpus is being systematically utilised in procuring sophisticated arms like Insas and AK-series rifles, besides explosives like RDX, various communication gadgets and accessories from different parts of the country and abroad.
Training recruits
“A large part of the funds is apparently used to run training camps for the new recruits,” the report said.
The major chunk of the collection comes from extortion, ransom and levies slapped on businessmen and traders.
This apart, the banned outfit has also taken to illegal opium farming over vast tracts of land, which adds to its coffers. Going by the break-up of collection, Jharkhand, West Bengal and Chhattisgarh—three worst affected states—are said to have contributed more than 80 per cent of the total fund raised over the period.
While the Maoists have reportedly collected Rs 1,000 crore from Jharkhand, Rs 550 crore has come from West Bengal while Chhattisgarh has contributed about Rs 500 crore, the report said.
A total of Rs 200 crore has been collected from Bihar, Rs 100 crore from Andhra Pradesh followed by Maharashtra (Rs 78 crore), Orissa (Rs 37 crore) and Tamil Nadu (Rs 35 crore), sources said.
What has set alarm bells ringing in the Home Ministry is the confirmation of firming up of ties with the banned Kashmiri jehadi groups by these Naxalite groups.
A case in point is the recent invitation extended to separatist Kashmiri leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani by the Naxalite union at Jadavpur University in Kolkata.
“Apart from sending a signal to the minorities living in this part of the country, they (Maoists) have been steadily building their communication channel with the Jammu and Kashmir militants. In fact, recovery of sophisticated communication equipment from the West Bengal state secretary of the Maoists speaks volumes about their strategic gameplan,” sources told Deccan Herald here on Tuesday.
The report said the Maoists had forged links with their counterparts and several other extremist organisations in Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and the Phillippines.