POLITICAL PATRONAGE TO MAOISTS

Editorial - Peoples Democracy

Probe This Nexus!

THE Maoists have staged a daring stoppage of the Bhubaneswar-Delhi Rajdhani in the Jhargram-Kharagpur section, near Banstala station and holding it for over five hours. Mercifully, there were no casualties, thanks to the joint operations conducted by the security forces which resulted in the safety of the passengers and the release of the train. From the graffiti on the train, scripted by no hapless tribal but by someone well heeled, it can be inferred that this was done to demand the release of Chhatradhar Mahato, leader of the Maoist-backed People's Action Committee against Police Atrocities, recently arrested by the police.

The whole incident raises many questions that need to be probed. All those who have travelled by Rajdhanis or Shatabdis know that the train hurtles at speeds of around 120 kilometers per hour and even when obstructions are noticed on the track, application of emergency breaks would lead to damage to both the tracks and the train. In this case, however, the train peacefully ground to a halt.

The minister of Railway's first reaction, typical of the usual hyperbole and absurdity, was that the CPI(M) cadre had blocked the train to malign her image! However, when the graffiti exposed the perpetrators of this outrage as belonging to the Maoists, the minister expressed her desire for a dialogue and even conveyed to those holding the train hostage to suggest a venue! Further, one of the Trinamool Congress ministers in the union cabinet, Sishir Adhikary, soon after the incident, boasted to the media that he had prior knowledge that such an attack would take place. Surely, the prime minister needs to probe the source of such `knowledge' by his ministerial colleague and inform the nation.

The collaboration of the Trinamool Congress with the Maoists has been detailed in these columns earlier as well. Chhatradhar Mahato was a local Trinamool leader before becoming the head of the so-called People's Committee. The self-declared and publicity hungry spokesman of the Maoists, Kishenji, had earlier declared to the media that the Maoists wish to see Ms Mamata Banerjee as the future chief minister of Bengal. He has also suggested that as they had helped the Trinamool earlier in Nandigram and now in Lalgarh, they expect the Trinamool to return the favour. Clearly, this has once again confirmed that the Maoists began their operations in Bengal under the political patronage and protection provided by the Trinamool.

It is precisely due to this political collaboration between the two that the Trinamool, till we go to press, has not condemned this Maoist outrage of stopping and damaging the train. It is again precisely due to this political arrangement between the two that the Trinamool Congress has been asking for the withdrawal of the central forces in the operations against Maoist terror in Bengal. Ironically, such blatant support for the Maoists and their terrorist activities comes from a party that is in that very union cabinet headed by the prime minister who on repeated occasions had stated that Maoist violence constitutes the gravest threat to India's internal security. The tragedy for the country is that this UPA government is continuing, displaying no discomfort, despite such a blatant contradiction. The prime minister owes an explanation to the country on this score.

In the meanwhile, there are reports of growing unrest and insecurity amongst the railway employees. A leader of the Railway Men's Union in Purulia has expressed grave doubts on the security of railway personnel who are not being provided adequate forces to protect themselves from growing Maoist attacks on railway stations, tracks and other railway facilities. The situation will not improve, they feel, as long as the Trinamool chief is the Railway minister because of the close political collaboration between them.

These are issues that warrant a serious probe. Can the safety of the Indian Railways, one of the most important instruments of our country's unity and integrity, be jeopardised at the altar of crass political opportunism of protecting and patronising the Maoists? And, consequently, permit the Maoists to mount grave threats to our country's internal security? The prime minister and this UPA-2 government need to assure the people that India's internal security is not being compromised. A thorough investigation into all these issues must be urgently ordered and those culpable of damaging the interests of our country that threaten the lives of the innocent people must be made accountable.

(28 October, 2009)

EC deployed Central forces as demanded by Congress: Pinarayi Vijayan

Communist Party of India (Marxist) State secretary Pinarayi Vijayan has said that the Election Commission (EC) has deployed the Central forces in the Kannur and Alappuzha Assembly constituencies as demanded by the Congress without any regard for facts to be considered for such a decision.

Speaking at a meet-the-press programme at the Press Club in Kannur on Thursday, Mr. Vijayan said in response to a question on the deployment of the Central Industrial Security Force by the EC that usually the State police personnel were posted for law enforcement during election time and police personnel from the neighbouring States were mobilised when the State police was found insufficient for law and order enforcement. The Central forces were considered only when both the State police and personnel from neighbouring States were not adequate for the purpose, he said adding that the State police now had

sufficient force for ensuring law and order in the three Assembly constituencies. “Has the EC made any assessment that the State’s police is not adequate for the law and order control in the three constituencies, and if so, what are the facts on which such an assessment has been made?”, he asked.

None of the three constituency had any situation that warranted the deployment of the Central forces, the CPI(M) leader said adding that the forces were deployed to give protection to voters. “We will question it if they fail to give protection to voters”, he added.

Stating that the Left Democratic Front (LDF) expected the EC to hold the election in a free and fair manner, he said that the Congress was often responsible for several occasions when the EC as a Constitutional institution for holding free and fair elections had come in for criticism. The Congress had often tried to bring the EC under its control, Mr. Vijayan alleged adding that a former Chief Election Commission had been made Minister by the Congress. “We always accept the impartiality of the EC, but oppose the EC whenever

it deviates from impartiality”, he added.

The EC should consider whether it was proper on its part to accept all the demands of the Congress, Mr. Vijayan said. He also said that the LDF had no concern about deployment of the Central forces. He, however, recalled that the Central forces had been deployed in West Bengal and Tripura on different occasions for capturing rule in the two States. On those occasions, the Central forces had given protection to people who tried to subvert the elections, he said adding that such a situation did not exist in the State today.

To another question on alleged manipulation of voters in the Kannur constituency, Mr. Vijayan said that those who had raised controversy over the allegation should now realise that the official verification

of new voters here had found only 800-odd voters as people who were not residing in the constituency.

Asserting that the LDF had maintained a clear lead throughout the electioneering in the constituencies, Mr. Vijayan said that the political situation during the Lok Sabha election had changed as even sections of people who had voted for the Congress-led alliance were now disillusioned because of anti-people policies of the United Progressive Alliance government including the Indo-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement. The UDF allegations were an attempt to divert the public from these issues, he said adding that the Congress had won the Lok Sabha election by creating a world of illusion.

The CPI(M) State secretary also questioned the allegation of the UDF leadership that the LDF government had failed in utilising funds sanctioned for the Central schemes. During the previous UDF government, the utilisation was 65-65 per cent which rose to 82.6 per cent during 2007-08. The utilisation in the current fiscal was all set to be a record, he added. The LDF government had also fared well in the utilisation of rural development funds which rose from 35 per cent during the UDF rule to 55 per cent during the LDF rule. There was hardly any utilisation of fund sanctioned under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Programme on the first year of its implementation when the State was ruled by the UDF government, he said. The State had been sanctioned a pilot project because of its successful implementation of the NREGP, he added.

To a question on the EC’s direction to Union Minister for Overseas Indian Affairs Vayalar Ravi to return official expenses, if any, during his visit to the State in October, Mr. Vijayan said that the EC’s direction should be treated as a punishment, but he added that the EC had not examined all aspects of the complaints that the Minister had breached the election code of conduct during his visit here. The CPI(M) leader also said that the UDF candidate A.P. Abdullakutty was a nominee of K. Sudhakaran who he said was in the ‘fourth group’ in the Congress . Many Congress leaders including Union Minister of State for Home Mullappally Ramachandran had strongly opposed Mr. Abdullakutty’s entry into the party, he said.

(Courtesy : The Hindu)