Gaya (Bihar):
The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) on
Wednesday arrested three Maoists after a gun battle in Bihar's Gaya district.
Acting on a tip off, the CRPF troops began combing a jungle under Barachatti police
station and a gun battle followed soon after. "Three activists surrendered, who
were hiding in the fields when we launched a search operation. On interrogation
they confessed they had relations with Maoists and were helping them with arms
and ammunition," said Vijay Kumar, Commandant, CRPF "We recovered huge quantity
of items like wireless sets, explosives which had timer devices, ammunition and
uniform," he added. India has witnessed a series of violent Maoist attacks after
police arrested three top Maoist ideologues --. Kobad Ghandy, Chhatradhar Mahato
and Chandrabhushan Yadav recently. India is battling Maoists across eastern, central
and southern India, an insurgency that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has described
as the biggest internal security challenge since independence. The government
of India formally been labelled Maoists as a terrorist group which gives security
forces more enforcement powers. The Maoist rebellion commenced about four decades
ago for the cause of poor peasants in the east, but has now spread to about 20
of India's 29 states. The Maoists, who say they are waging war on behalf of the
poor and the landless against the state, have taken effective control of interior
areas of the countryside.
