HVK Archives: Parallel powers in Bihar outshine the ill-equipped Rabri Devi
Parallel powers in Bihar outshine the ill-equipped Rabri Devi - The Asian Age
J. P. Yadav
()
28 September 1997
Title: Parallel powers in Bihar outshine the ill-equipped Rabri Devi
government
Author: J. P. Yadav
Publication: The Asian Age
Date: September 28, 1997
The willy-nilly attitude of the government towards the extremists has led
them to increase their base of operation in a number of districts.
According to recent government figures 41 out of the 55 districts in the
state are affected by various naxal outfits and private armies of
landlords. According to the report, out of the 41 districts, about 18 are
"badly affected." The extremist outfits almost run a parallel government.
The recent killings in Palamu and Chatra districts of south-central Bihar
led the government to and summon an emergency meeting of SPs, DIGs and DDCs
of all the districts to review the law and order situation in the state.
But the meeting turned out to be nothing more than a ritual, with chief
minister Ms Rabri Devi urging the officials to discharge their duties with
honesty to maintain law and order in the state.
In fact, the police force also remains a mute spectator, due to lack of
force, and resources. During the meeting an officer of the DIG rank said
that they were in no position to tackle the naxalite problem in the state.
"In the police stations where there are no batteries for torches, no
wireless sets and no vehicles, how can we fight the naxals," he pointed
out, much to the discomfiture of the chief minister and other senior
officials.
The naxal groups on the other hand are well-trained and possess even
sophisticated arms. The Maoist Communist Centre with its cadres trained in
guerrilla warfare, and having such sophisticated arms as AK-47, is
considered to be the deadliest naxal outfit which operates in the central
and south-central districts of Bihar. It has about one thousand "hit and
run squads" including women squads.
Then, there is the CPI(ML) Party Unity faction. which operates in the same
districts as MCC and is now locked in a bitter war for turf control. The
bloody clash between them has led to the death of several persons. with the
victims being the poor, backward and dalit, who ironically, form their
support base and are supposed to be protected by the naxals. The naxal
outfits, having demolished their enemies, the feudal landlords, have locked
horns among themselves, differing on ideological issues. The mineral and
forest-rich parts of the central and south-central districts turn out to be
rich tax-earners for these outfits. Illegal mining and felling of trees by
traders are rampant in these districts and they pay levies to these
extremist groups, which keeps the business going.
The recent trends in their clashes have shown that it is acute in those
areas where there are more illegal economic activities. The two recent
massacres in Palamu and Chatra districts took place in these areas.
According to sources in the police, Palamu district yields about Rs 30
crores of annual levy for the naxalites from the illegal mining and timber
trade Chatra district also provides about Rs 2 crores of levy annually from
the forest trade.
The money earned from levy is utilised by the groups to purchase
sophisticated arms for their squads. It has been reported, that a large
posse of the arms dropped in Purulia was for the MCC. Moreover, the latest
trends in naxalite violence show the use of dynamites, landmines and even
jeeps. To increase their influence, they resort to kidnapping, targeting of
police pickets and brutal killing of police informers. As custodians of
rural values and morals, they hold impromptu courts called "Jan Adalats"
where the guilty are severely punished.
The spurt in the naxalite activities has also given an impetus to the
activities of the private armies of the landlords, in agriculturally-rich
areas of central Bihar. The private army trend, which had almost ceased to
exist, has once again reared up its ugly head. According to a recent state
report, there are as many as 11 private armies operating in various parts
of the state.
The Ranbir Sena of the landed Bhumihars community which has basically
existed in the "rich bowl" district Bhojpur of central Bihar, has increased
its area of influence in the neighbouring rural districts of Jehanabad and
Patna. The north western district of Siwan, which had remained free of
these activities has also seen a rise to the private armies. According to a
government report, the clash and creation of these private armies and
naxalite activities in the agricultural districts are basically centred
around land problems. The utter failure of the government to carry out its
promise of land reforms is the major reason behind these problems and
activities.
The increasing activities of these private armies has presented the warring
naxalites with one more enemy. Recently, the MCC, apart from carrying out
its supremacy campaign among other naxalite outfits, had also warned the
Ranbir Sena to restrict itself or face a brutal massacre of their supporters.
The private armies, however, funded by the rich landlord are also
well-armed and are providing training to their cadres on the line of the
naxalites! Their level of confidence is so high that they are even
challenging the naxalites. If the administration continues its indifferent
attitude and fails to take up the matter seriously, the result obviously
will be more bloodshed.
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