By Robin Sam
WHAT does it take to fight the enemy, who is invisible, shrewder than you, can attack and pulverize you at will and yet get away with the most heinous of crimes?
No, this is not a trick Bible question. If you put the question to CRPF (Central Reserve Police Force) battling Naxal menace in Chhattisgarh, Odisha, West Bengal and Jharkhand, the top echelons of the force would reel out the names of their latest arsenal including X95 (night vision enabled sniper rifles), UBGL (under-barrel grenade launchers), lightweight Glock pistols and MP5A rifles. The CRPF believes these latest addition to their weaponry would take the breath out of the enemy – the Maoists. The force is pushing for further militarization in the hope that they would be able to wipe out the Naxal menace.
Also read: Christian Messenger opens mission field in Bastar, Chhattisgarh
Put the same question to a believer and he would readily quote Ephesians 6:12: ‘For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in heavenly places.’
Although Union Home Minister P Chidambaram minces no words while talking about the Naxal menace, the government is loathe to taking strong action against the Maoist guerillas for fear of upsetting human rights activists, intellectuals and its vote bank. Although the destructive forces of naxalism and terrorism work similarly to destroy the country, some leaders would like to see them as different entities. They would like to be seen as coming down heavily on terrorism even as they handle naxals with kid gloves.
Although CRPF claims its men’s morale is high, a casual tour into some of the Naxal-infected areas of Chhattisgarh and Odisha would portray a different picture. While the police move around in civvies and take care not to be seen anywhere in the open after dusk, the Naxals emerge out of thick jungles after 6 pm to ‘check’ vehicles moving on national highways. Take a trip down from Jagdalpur to Kirandul via Geedam, Dantewada and Bacheli and you would notice that it is difficult to spot policemen on the roads. They are even scarce in police stations fortified by barbed wires after sunset. According to a local police officer in Jagdalpur, cops have been asked not to venture out of police stations and CRPF generally avoids long range patrols.
The recent abduction of Sukma district collector Alex Paul Menon put the spotlight on naxalism in Chhattisgarh. Although Mr. Menon was released by the Naxalites after a few days in custody the incident underlined a fact: Naxals can strike at will and hold the government to ransom even when CRPF boasts of high morale and sophisticated weaponry.
If you are in Bastar you will notice that vehicles speeding on the national highways along dense forests and mountains in the Red Corridor switch on the cabin light after sunset. Quiz the drivers of the vehicles for the reason behind it and they will tell you it is to signal that their car is a civilian vehicle. Otherwise, it takes no time for the naxals to blow up the vehicle suspecting it to be a police vehicle. Districts like Bastar, Sukma, Kanker and Dantewada have seen a lot of violence. It is not uncommon to see craters caused by landmine blasts on highways. If you see large trees felled by the roadside, you must realize that the naxals have been at work blocking the highways to screen the vehicles passing by. Along the NH, you will also see trucks burnt. That is how naxals react to the timber mafia who challenge their supremacy in the forests.
It is not just in Chhattisgarh. Naxalism is a threat in West Bengal, Odisha and Jharkhand, too. According to the home ministry, 3,936 civilians and security personnel have been killed in the past five years in insurgent attacks across India.
Naxalism in India cannot be wished away. Even the most foolproof strategy by the best statesman in the country can go awry if it is not combined with wisdom and compassion. If the governments are serious about bringing the naxals back to the mainstream and make them cohabit in peace with the common man, then they need to realize it would take more than government doles and projects to achieve their objective. They would need to involve credible non-government organizations, churches and mission agencies to reach out to them. Is anyone listening?
