GUWAHATI, Feb 13 � After spreading their wings to different parts of India, the Maoist rebel groups have started making serious efforts to establish their network in the North East region and reports of a recent meeting between Maoists and the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) is causing serious concern among the security forces.
Highly placed security sources told The Assam Tribune that hardcore Maoist rebel leader Koteswar Rao, commonly known as Kishanji, recently met ULFA commander-in-chief Paresh Baruah and this has caused serious concern among the security agencies as, if the Maoist rebel groups and the ULFA manage to come together, the security scenario in Assam and other parts of the region may deteriorate fast.
Sources said that Kishanji met Paresh Baruah under his organisational name Pradeep and according to intelligence reports, the meeting took place very recently after the arrest of ULFA chairman Arabinda Rajkhowa. Sources said that the Maoist leader meets different rebel groups under different names to keep his identity a secret as far as possible. Kishanji, normally moves around in West Bengal, Jharkhand and Chattisgarh but he had visited Myanmar a few times. The Maoist leader recently had a close shave when he managed to escape in the nick of time after an operation in West Bengal and the security forces managed to recover his laptop computer and other vital documents. Though it was not yet known where the meeting took place, security sources said that Myanmar could be the venue.
Security sources said that intelligence reports on the meeting between Kishanji and Paresh Baruah were confirmed when the Maoist leader himself admitted the fact in an interview with a mouthpiece of the Maoists. The Maoist leader reportedly told Paresh Baruah that the ULFA should refrain from targeting the Indian working classes and the suggestion perhaps was an indication that the Maoists were concerned about the attacks on Hindi, speaking people launched by the ULFA. The Maoist leader further suggested that the ULFA made a mistake by associating itself with countries like Bangladesh, Myanmar etc., as according to him, those countries are like �puppets of the Government of India.�
At one point of time, the ULFA had close ties with the Maoist rebel groups but in the early part of 1990s, the distance between the ULFA and the Maoists started increasing mainly because of ideological differences. But the recent meeting proved that both the sides are trying to strengthen ties yet again for mutual benefits. Though the assurances given by both sides at the meeting are not yet known, security sources believe that the Maoists can play a vital role in strengthening the ULFA in the grassroot level, while, on the other hand, the ULFA is still in a position to provide arms and ammunition to the Maoists.
Meanwhile, the security agencies have managed to uncover attempts by the rebel Maoist groups to establish links with other militant groups of the region and according to intelligence inputs, representatives of the NSCN (I-M) attended a meeting of the Maoist rebels in Chattisgarh a couple of months back and offered to provide training to their cadres to strengthen the arms wing of the Maoist groups, while, the Maoists have also signed an agreement with a Manipur, based militant group.
GUWAHATI, Feb 13 � After spreading their wings to different parts of India, the Maoist rebel groups have started making serious efforts to establish their network in the North East region and reports of a recent meeting between Maoists and the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) is causing serious concern among the security forces.
Highly placed security sources told The Assam Tribune that hardcore Maoist rebel leader Koteswar Rao, commonly known as Kishanji, recently met ULFA commander-in-chief Paresh Baruah and this has caused serious concern among the security agencies as, if the Maoist rebel groups and the ULFA manage to come together, the security scenario in Assam and other parts of the region may deteriorate fast.
Sources said that Kishanji met Paresh Baruah under his organisational name Pradeep and according to intelligence reports, the meeting took place very recently after the arrest of ULFA chairman Arabinda Rajkhowa. Sources said that the Maoist leader meets different rebel groups under different names to keep his identity a secret as far as possible. Kishanji, normally moves around in West Bengal, Jharkhand and Chattisgarh but he had visited Myanmar a few times. The Maoist leader recently had a close shave when he managed to escape in the nick of time after an operation in West Bengal and the security forces managed to recover his laptop computer and other vital documents. Though it was not yet known where the meeting took place, security sources said that Myanmar could be the venue.
Security sources said that intelligence reports on the meeting between Kishanji and Paresh Baruah were confirmed when the Maoist leader himself admitted the fact in an interview with a mouthpiece of the Maoists. The Maoist leader reportedly told Paresh Baruah that the ULFA should refrain from targeting the Indian working classes and the suggestion perhaps was an indication that the Maoists were concerned about the attacks on Hindi, speaking people launched by the ULFA. The Maoist leader further suggested that the ULFA made a mistake by associating itself with countries like Bangladesh, Myanmar etc., as according to him, those countries are like �puppets of the Government of India.�
At one point of time, the ULFA had close ties with the Maoist rebel groups but in the early part of 1990s, the distance between the ULFA and the Maoists started increasing mainly because of ideological differences. But the recent meeting proved that both the sides are trying to strengthen ties yet again for mutual benefits. Though the assurances given by both sides at the meeting are not yet known, security sources believe that the Maoists can play a vital role in strengthening the ULFA in the grassroot level, while, on the other hand, the ULFA is still in a position to provide arms and ammunition to the Maoists.
Meanwhile, the security agencies have managed to uncover attempts by the rebel Maoist groups to establish links with other militant groups of the region and according to intelligence inputs, representatives of the NSCN (I-M) attended a meeting of the Maoist rebels in Chattisgarh a couple of months back and offered to provide training to their cadres to strengthen the arms wing of the Maoist groups, while, the Maoists have also signed an agreement with a Manipur, based militant group.
