Lapse in Intelligence on Naxal Activities; Admits Home Secretary
Patna: July 2, 2007
The state government, alarmed by the recent surge in Naxal violence in Bihar, has summoned a high-level meeting of top cops and babus on July 4 to discuss strategies to deal with the menace that has clearly bolstered the opposition parties in its criticism against the Nitish government and has left the administration dumbfounded.
Director General of Police (DGP) Ashish Ranjan Sinha, Additional Director General of Police (DGP) Abhayanand, Superintendents of Police (SP) of terrorist-hit areas, Intelligence officers, and other top officials will attend the meet to formulate strategy to check Naxal-related violence in Bihar, Home Secretary Afzal Amanullah said on Monday.
Amanullah, however, conceded that the state intelligence had clearly failed in keeping tabs on Naxal extremists who have become bolder despite some strong measures taken by the administration against them.
Talking about the Naxal attack on a police outpost in Rohtas district during which six police officials were gunned down last Saturday night, the Home Secretary said it was abundantly evident that the station in-charges of Rajpur and Baghela police outposts were not on duty when the attack occurred.
"We are seeking a full report from the Superintendent of Police (SP) on the attack to get a better understanding of the unfortunate incident," Amanullah said.
Meanwhile, Anil Sinha, IG police headquarters, denied any lapse in police discharge of duties.
"We are neither weaker than the extremists nor we have any dearth of resources. However, the problem is that we have to exercise utmost caution in our operation so innocent civilians do not become the casualty in the police-Naxal war. The ultras, on the other hand, do not care about innocent human lives and that creates more problem for us than anything else," Sinha said.
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