Author: Ratnadip Choudhury
Publication: Tehelka
Date: December 17, 2011
URL: http://www.tehelka.com/story_main51.asp?filename=Ne171211Kishenji.asp
Introduction: Secret exchanges between the
Maoist and a Manipuri rebel outfits show that the slain Naxal leader was seeking
an access to China.
Delhi Police nabbed a priceless catch when
a raid at a hotel in Paharganj led to the arrest of N Dilip Singh alias N
Wangba, the external affairs chief of the banned People's Liberation Army
(PLA) of Manipur. Along with Dilip, 51, his deputy, Arun Kumar Singh Salam,
36, was also arrested. Their interrogation by the National Investigation Agency
(NIA) revealed startling information about how the nexus between the CPI(Maoist)
and the PLA had blossomed ever since the two outfits signed a joint declaration
on 22 October 2008 against the Indian government.
There have been reports that Dilip was helping
the Maoists reach out to rebel groups in the Northeast, and that Maoists were
trying to spread the idea of a Strategic United Front of all rebel outfits
operating in the restive region. All these reports were source-based inputs.
Now, TEHELKA has accessed secret letters between the Maoists and the PLA leadership,
all routed through Dilip, which reveal how the nexus was formed and how this
scheme was the brainchild of slain Maoist leader Kishenji himself. TEHELKA
has not independently verified the authenticity of these letters, which were
provided by reliable police sources.
On 24 January 2010, CPI(Maoist) General Secretary
Ganapathy wrote to Irengbam Chaoren, president of the outlawed Revolutionary
People's Front (RPF) of Manipur (PLA is the armed wing of the RPF). In the
letter, Ganapathy informed the PLA that the Maoists have to call off the planned
military training because of Operation Green Hunt. He also proposed a meeting
for which he would send two Maoist Central Committee (MCC) members and said
that the main agenda of the talks should be the formation of a Strategic United
Front. The meeting took place on 18-20 March 2010, in which Kishenji was also
present. TEHELKA has a copy of the minutes of that meeting.
On 22 March 2010, Kishenji sent a letter to
the PLA in which he floated the idea of forming a grand alliance to unite
all rebel groups in which the Maoists would take the lead role. "We put
one proposal regarding building a united front that will be strategic in nature
comprising all the revolutionary, democratic and progressive forces of the
Northeast. We also put the proposal of helping us by sending instructors for
military and communication training and also sending 3-5 men for military
and other training," wrote Kishenji.
In the first bilateral meeting, it was decided
that the PLA would start a 12-14 month training camp for Maoists from September
2010. The PLA agreed to send two trainers each for military and communication
training. The PLA also agreed to provide arms and communication devices to
Maoists; all these were noted in the meeting's minutes, in which Kishenji
has been referred to as Kishan Da.
Further meetings were held in Kolkata, Guwahati
and Rourkela. According to NIA sources, a meeting for finalising the training
schedule was held in Champai, Mizoram, which was attended by Kishenji. The
sources confirmed that Dilip confessed that arms training did take place in
the Saranda forest of Jharkhand on 11-20 November 2010, but it was cut short.
TEHELKA has in its possession another secret
letter that clarifies why the training was cut short. On 30 December 2010,
Sagar, a top commander of the Maoist armed unit, sent a secret missive to
the RPF general secretary. The letter reveals that while the Maoists could
not start the training on time owing to massive operations against them by
the Joint Forces, the PLA failed to send the high-frequency wireless communication
devices on time.
The letter is interesting if one reads between
the lines. Sagar airs his disappointment over the fact that the PLA trainers
left early, although the training was supposed to last three months. It becomes
clear that the two outfits could not take the bonhomie further due to serious
"hiccups" during the first phase of training.
The PLA was given a contract of procuring
Chinese-made rocket-propelled grenades, automatic rifles and high-end wireless
sets. "We have found out that the PLAwas supposed to hand over high-frequency
wireless sets before the training started, but they were able to send it only
at a later date," an NIA source said.
Kishenji was trying to develop secret links
with other rebel groups in the Northeast, including the United Liberation
Front of Asom (ULFA) and the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (Issac-Muivah)
or NSCN(IM). The latter's chief arms procurer Anthony Shimray, who is in NIA
custody, confessed that a huge cache of arms for the Maoists was purchased
from a Chinese company. The consignment included automatic rifles, rocket
launchers and grenades. TEHELKAwas informed by an insider from the anti-talk
faction of ULFA that Kishenji was in touch with ULFA army chief Paresh Barua,
who led him to Shimray.
IN 2008, when the PLA and the Maoists signed
the joint declaration, another development was taking place that eventually
was seen as 'beneficial' by Kishenji. According to intelligence sources, Paresh
Barua and Chaoren flew to Kunming in China's Yunan province from Dhaka and
had two meetings with Chinese military intelligence brass in February. In
May, they flew again to Beijing and an understanding was reached on arms dealing.
At that time, the PLA had urged the Chinese to help the Maoists and an "assurance"
from the Chinese was sent through the PLA.
In the sensational letter from Kishenji available
with TEHELKA, the Maoists had stressed on forming a Strategic United Front
as a means to "counter the physiological war" of New Delhi. The
minutes of the meeting between the PLA and the Maoists where Kishenji was
present clearly states: "The Maoists have agreed to the RPF/PLA proposal
of maintaining contact and collaborating with foreign countries."
The Maoist-PLA nexus might have taken several
blows due to the arrest of various PLA cadre and Kishenji's death but the
worry for New Delhi is perhaps the fact that the Maoists have access not only
to Northeast rebel outfits but through them to the Chinese as well.
Ratnadip Choudhury is a Principal Correspondent
with Tehelka.
ratnadip@tehelka.com