It is most disconcerting that Naxal attacks on security forces personnel have been taking place with breathtaking regularity somewhere of other in the 10 Naxal-affected states, even though intelligence inputs per se are much smarter than earlier.
Evidently, the tip-offs are not being duly acted upon. Recently, there were 13 alerts, giving specific locations in the Maoist-infested jungles of Gadchiroli in Maharashtra about a possible Naxal attack on security forces to avenge the killing of 40 Naxals in 2018.
Yet, 15 police personnel were blown to smithereens close on the heels of a Naxal leader Ramko being killed in an encounter with the Maharashtra police in Gundurwahi forest area of Gadchiroli. There indeed were many inputs, mostly about plans to avenge the 2018 incident where 40 Naxals were killed. In 2009 Naxals had burnt vehicles to target police personnel as they visited the site for investigation.
In one such incident, 17 personnel were killed in Gadchiroli. The same modus operandi was used on May 1 to ambush the security personnel. Maoists set ablaze 27 vehicles engaged in road construction work about five kilometre from Purad and then waited for police parties to fall into their trap.
There were standard operating procedures in place for such exigencies but these were typically ignored. Naxals had prior information of the movement of the Quick Response Team (QRT) so they planted bombs beneath the road and targeted the private vehicle ferrying them.
The reason as to why the QRT party didn’t take a road opening party (ROP) must be inquired into and lessons drawn and learnt. Why was an armoured vehicle not pressed and why two private vehicles were used to ferry personnel are also questions that deserve to be answered honestly with due diligence. It also needs to be determined why the crucial intelligence reports were not heeded and acted upon.
Evidently, the intelligence reports are left to gather dust in shelves while they ought to evoke quick and effective action to stave off such Naxal strikes. There is also a dire need to drill fear into the minds of the Naxals through punitive action and swift dispensation of justice.
The hard reality is that the law does not act as an effective deterrent and the rule of law is played with. It is also vital that there be proper co-ordination between the security personnel of various states infested with Naxals for them to be tracked and brought to book to control the growing menace of Naxals taking law into their own hands.