Maoists killing their own in Bastar: Retaliation for Operation 'Samadhan' or a fratricidal war?

The Maoists claimed to have executed 25 people recently in Bijapur district, including some of their key associates, labeling them as secret agents, coverts and informers operating for the Chhattisgarh police.

While the outlawed insurgent group has accused the state police of building such operatives network to sabotage their movement, Chhattisgarh police attribute “the unprecedented killing of six Maoists by their own to “the turmoil among the senior and local cadres over the violence unleashed on innocent tribals.”

In a statement, Vikalp, official representative of the Dandakaranya Special Zonal Committee, CPI (Maoists) said that 12 secret agents, five coverts and eight informers in Gangaloor area of Bijapur district were eliminated in the people’s court, “based on credible evidence.”

“The central, state governments planned operation “Samadhan” to eliminate our leadership and movement by 2022. As part of this tactic, Bastar IGP Sundarraj and Bijapur SP Kamalochan Kashyap have enlisted secret agents, coverts, and informers on a large scale in the district. Monthly salaries were credited into the bank accounts opened in their name,” Vikalp said in the statement dated 7 October released to the press.

SAMADHAN is the strategy to deal with Left-Wing Extremism announced in 2017 by the then-Home Minister Rajnath Singh.

Vikalp alleged the network of recruits as involved in various atrocities and killings in the forest villages, terrorizing the locals.

The Maoists said that “during their pursuit to crack the secret agent net, one of their key operative Modiyam Vijjalu, who became a divisional committee member in 2012, was also revealed as a covert from the last two years.”

The Maoist letter does not mention the period when the assassinations took place.

However, speaking to DH, Bastar Inspector General of Police Sundarraj Pattilingam said that most of the civilian, Maoist killings took place during August and September.

Senior Maoist Modiyami Vijja, carrying a Rs 10 lakh reward on him, was killed in the Pediya jungles of Bijapur on October 1 by his deputy Dinesh Modiyami and senior Pappa Rao over their disagreement about the civilian killings, the IGP said.

“There is much dissent among the senior and local cadres about the mindless violence against the innocent tribals. We received reliable information about the killing of five more Maoists by their own cadres in the last one month in West Bastar Division area of Bijapur,” Sundarraj told DH.

About the accusations on him, the official said, “The locals killed in the name of informers etc. are normal villagers. It is Maoists’ typical modus operandi of blaming the police to justify their slayings.”

Six Naxals killed by their own cadres in last one month, police say -

1. Modiyami Vijja, divisional committee member in-charge of Gangaloor Area Committee in West Bastar Division. Rs ten lakh reward declared on him

2 Sandip alias Budharam Kursam, Jan Militia platoon section commander. Rs one lakh reward

3 Lakhu Hemla, Maoist Janatana school in-charge. Rs three lakh reward

4 Santosh, Dandakaranya Adivasi Kisan Mazdoor Sangathan range committee president. Rs three lakh reward

5 Dasru Mandavi (Jantana Sarkar President). Rs one lakh reward

6 Kamlu Punem, Militia Platoon Commander, Pidiya Area. Rs one lakh reward

QUOTE

Sundarraj Pattilingam, Inspector General of Police, Bastar: "Out of their frustration of losing public support, Naxals have killed innocent tribals labeling them as informers. Through this release they themselves admitted to killing their own cadres. With its leadership becoming clueless and directionless, the Naxal movement is nearing its end."