Naxal letter appeals cop to revolt against ‘oppressive ’ state

Experts term it an act of increasing frustration

NAGPUR: In what has shaken the police machinery engaged in anti-naxal operations, the Maoists have appealed to the men in uniform “to rise and revolt against your own system and the state, which is responsible for your frustration and pathetic life.”

The Maoists want the policemen “to join hands with the struggling labourers and peasantry to overthrow the State and create a new social order.”

“Our struggle will not be complete without your partnership,” said CPI (Maoists). It has made its appeal to policemen and paramilitary forces engaged in combat operations in Gadchiroli, Gondia and contiguous areas of Chhattisgarh.

“Overall, wherever you are fighting to suppress the struggles of the people, your life has become helpless, because the common people, whom you are killing, are of your own class. The statistics show, that every year the number of policemen killed by revolutionary people are much less than the number of policemen committing suicide or dying of common diseases,” reads the letter.

The police compromise with their conscience to use arms against their own brethren, and live a life full of tension and uncertainty, with no guarantee of their jobs, the pamphlets read. “Do not lose your life with your own hands; convert your frustration into rage and rise against the system,” the letter of appeal said.

The pamphlets, circulated in Marathi and Goendi, have been purportedly distributed by the Dandakaranya Special Zone Committee of CPI (Maoists). Additional DGP and chief of Anti-Naxal Operations  (ANO) Pankaj Gupta confirmed to DNA that such pamphlets had been found in Gadchiroli. “It is only an indication of increasing frustration among the naxalites,” he said. Gupta pointed out that the Maoists have had terrible setbacks in Maharashtra in recent years. “They have lost cadres, several of their leaders have been arrested and the local support is diminishing,” he added.

Yet, analysts say the pamphlets indicate a significant strategic shift in the position of Maoists. For, this is probably the first time that Maoists are directly trying to provoke the sentiments of the police and paramilitary forces.

Sources within the ANO say the possibility of subversion of some policemen and the paramilitary troops by the Maoists may not be completely ruled out. “The content of pamphlets and the confidence with which they have appealed to our men suggest that some of our men might be in some way sympathising with the Maoist guerrillas,” these sources believe.

“Naxalites have always considered the police their enemy and this appeal points to a very well-thought out plan to subvert the combatant policemen, especially from the tribal communities,” anti-naxal strategists say.

Though Gupta refused to read much into the content, ANO sources in the know inform that they have begun an internal assessment to find out if a few of their men have already been subverted to their cause by the banned outlaws.