Gidhni attack by Maoists could have been avoided

Both the recent killing of four Eastern Frontier Rifles jawans at Gidhni and the blocking of the Rajdhani Express at Bashtala near Jhargram in West Midnapore by the Maoist-backed People’s Committee against Police Atrocities could have been prevented, had West Bengal Police’s intelligence department decoded some mobile conversations.

Hours before Sunday’s Gidhni attack, the state CID intercepted this message, “We have to offload four cement bags at Gidhni, I’m sending workers.” However, highly-placed sources said, the interceptors failed to understand the significance of the conversation.

“It was only after the massacre, that were realised the significance of the conversation,” a top CID officer said. Similarly, a couple of days before the Rajdhani blockade, police mobile phone trackers intercepted yet another conversation during which the phrase “the rat needs to be stopped” was used.

“Although we are not sure the phrase had a direct link with the Rajdhani seizure, there is surely some significance,” the CID officer said. He said coded mobile conversations were the main barriers in tracking locations of top Maoist leaders.

The officer said the problem needed an urgent solution since the state police did not have an officer who specialises in prompt decoding of messages.