Patna, Dec. 9: The spectre of violence looms large in Naxalite-affected districts of south and central Bihar in the wake of declaration of a tribal leader as the new commander of the Sone-Ganga-Vindhyachal zone of CPI(Maoist).
Intelligence sources said Ravikant, a tribal cadre of the banned outfit, was appointed as the new commander of the Sone-Ganga-Vindhyachal zone last week, replacing Munna Vishwakarma, who was made commander after the death of Birendra Yadav, alias Rana, in June.
“Ravikant, said to be an active member of People’s Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA) of Chhattisgarh, has been given command of the Sone-Ganga-Vindhyachal zone,” said an officer associated with anti-Naxalite operations in Rohtas-Kaimur region.
Ravikant’s elevation to the post was announced at a meeting of the armed squad members in Rahel forest in Rohtas district on December 2 to mark the 11th anniversary of the formation of CPI(Maoist) following the merger of the Maoist Communist Centre (MCC) and the People’s War Group (PWG).
A host of leaders, including zonal secretary Yamuna, former commander Munna Vishwakarma, Kamlesh, Kavita and Abhay Yadav, were present at the meeting, which was reportedly held at the spot when former divisional forest officer of Rohtas Sanjay Singh was killed. The organisation is observing the anniversary from December 2 to 9.
Intelligence sources said the decision to replace Vishwakarma was taken by the central committee because of some wrong steps taken by the previous commander, which antagonised the members of the tribal community.
“The appointment of the tribal leader as zonal commander is a step towards winning the confidence of the tribal people, who are in sizeable number in the Kaimur plateau,” a police officer said, adding that the Maoists were losing their base in the area.
He said the killing of three members of Kharbar community in Banda village boomeranged on the self-proclaimed zonal commander Vishwakarma, who has now been asked to assist the new commander. The incident forced a large number of people to flee home and take shelter in the plains for almost two months. The secret meeting of the Maoists, however, put the district police officials on their toes. They immediately launched combing operations in the deep forests with the help of Central Reserve Police Force and Special Auxiliary Police personnel. A senior police officer, on condition of anonymity, admitted that the Maoists might step up their operations after the nomination of the new zonal commander. “We have launched joint operations in areas falling under Chutia, Nauhatta and Rohtas police stations to apprehend the Maoists and instil a sense of confidence among the residents,” said Rohtas superintendent of police Manu Maharaj.
He said the operations would continue. “We carry out search operations after receiving specific information about the movement of the Maoists,” he said, adding that the security personnel have penetrated even inaccessible areas on the Bihar-Uttar Pradesh and the Bihar-Jharkhand borders. He said the police stations located in Naxalite-affected areas have been put on alert and instructions have been issued to keep a close watch on the movement of the armed squad members.
“We are more vigilant in the wake of death of a senior Maoist leader, Kishan, in an encounter in Bengal,” the SP added.
