In a revival of Maoist violence in junglemhal after a year-long lull, two Central Reserve Police Force personnel were shot dead by the ultras during an encounter in West Bengal's West Midnapore district on Monday.
An alert has been sounded on the Andhra-Orissa border (AOB) and in some Telangana districts of Andhra Pradesh in the wake of the killing of top Maoist leader Kishenji in an encounter.
An aide of the sixth shooter arrested in the Sidhu Moosewala murder case had conducted reconnaissance in Mumbai to draw up a strategy to kill actor Salman Khan at the behest of gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, Punjab Police chief Gaurav Yadav said on Sunday.
The Centre on Thursday said the person killed in an encounter in West Midnapore was most probably top Maoist leader Kishenji and it was awaiting a final confirmation from the West Bengal police about the matter. "Most likely it is Kishenji. The officers on the spot said that it is Kishenji and most likely, 99 per cent it is Kishenji," Union Home Secretary R K Singh told reporters while reacting to reports about the killing of the Maoist leader.
Maoist-backed People's Committee against Police Atrocities leader Uma Kanta Mahto was killed in an encounter with joint security forces in West Midnapore district of West Bengal on Friday, said the police.Mahto was wanted in connection with the Gyaneshwari train disaster case that had claimed 148 lives on May 29 this year. The government had suspected that Maoists had planned the derailment of the passenger train.
His elder brother Om Prakash Chettri, who recently retired from the Army, said Siddhant was passionate only about serving the nation.
Security presence which has been bolstered by flying in more army troops and rapid action force and central police forces was clearly visible at all major areas and roads.
This is the second crash of Chetak in a fortnight. On August 27, another Chetak helicopter had crashed moments after take-off during a training mission at the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited airport in Bangalore.
A statement from the Army's Northern Command said its personnel have been conducting 'relentless intelligence-based operations to flush out a group of terrorists involved in an ambush on an Army truck in the Tota Gali area of Bhata Dhurian in Jammu region last month'.
'In this election -- her first major one since wresting power from the Left -- Mamata has proved that she has simply maintained the Left's systemic status quo by ensuring that she implements the CPI-M method of election and result 'management', says Dr Anirban Ganguly.
On average, about 60 cases were filed by the agency in 2019 and 2020, officials said.
Here's a recap of events that occurred in India in the past 24 hours.
Indrani Roy/Rediff.com visits Ranaghat in West Bengal's Nadia district, the scene of the horrific rape of a 72-year-old nun, and encounters a clueless police and a frightened Christian community.
This is one of the biggest casualties suffered by the elite COBRA unit that undertakes special jungle warfare ops.
'Unlike past governments, we never protect or save criminals.'
The North East is a sizeable success story for the Modi government politically and for the BJP electorally. It will be an unpleasant surprise if they choose to blow it, bowing to their basic, polarising instinct at any point, points out Shekhar Gupta.
Here's a recap of moments captured in India in the past 24 hours.
It was the state government which has violated human rights and slapped false cases against the GJM, he claimed.
Anil Pehelwan alias Leela, who was one of the three most wanted criminals of Delhi and had a cash reward of Rs 2 lakh on his arrest, has been arrested by the Crime Branch following a brief encounter.
'Not afraid to look Muslim, not shy of flaunting her nationalism.' 'With a willingness to fight carrying the Constitution, the Flag, the Anthem, Ambedkar, Gandhi and the chant of 'Hindustan Zindabad',' notes Shekhar Gupta.
'Defence, development and democracy is the formula to defeat Naxalism.'
'Not unlike politicians who gravitate towards whoever is in power, mafia dons too have a great survival streak, switching loyalty to the party in power,' observes Virendra Kapoor a week after gangster Vikas Dubey was slain in an alleged encounter.
'You have been surrounded from all directions, if you want the safety of your troops and your personal safety, we will give you eight hours to make up your mind to surrender.'
'My party men discouraged me from visiting Kaliachak because all kind of people were part of the mob and they feared that someone could shoot at me.' 'Criminals were involved in burning the police station and then attacking Baliadanga to give it a communal colour.'
How did a small-time businessman from Hyderabad come to mastermind the kidney racket?
'The current BJP leadership believes the party's expansion across India, and thus their own survival at the top, depends on injecting communal tension into areas where it has so far been largely controlled,' argues Mihir S Sharma.
'Our only child. A Communist.' 'There was an encounter by the police inside this room, five years ago. He was shot in one arm, but managed to escape.' 'Missing since then. May Jesus keep him alive.' A revealing excerpt from Asim Mukhopadhyay's Half Man: A Novel On The Naxal Movement.
The states fear they would end up funding both their own scheme as well as the newly-announced National Health Protection Scheme.
Here's a recap of events that occurred in India in the past 24 hours.
'The operation was planned in a manner so as not to alert the terrorists.' 'Every precaution was taken to keep it low-key so as not to alert the terrorists and surprise them and arrest them.'
Blaming state actors in Pakistan for making attempts to destabilise India, Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday said the neighbouring country has not abandoned its efforts to harm the country through "various tactics".
Interference from politicians in terror cases creates added confusion, giving operatives enough time to give investigators the slip. Vicky Nanjappa reports
Rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa explains why destroying mobile towers just before a political rally is a big headache for security agencies.
Critical of the hurried clearance of the food security ordinance, Bharatiya Janata Party President Rajnath Singh said on Thursday the United Progressive Alliance government was just doing a "political gimmick in a hurry" before the 2014 general elections.
Maharashtra police on Tuesday raided the homes of prominent Left-wing activists in several states and arrested at least five of them for suspected Maoist links. Near simultaneous searches were carried out at the residences of prominent Telugu poet Varavara Rao in Hyderabad, activists Vernon Gonzalves and Arun Farreira in Mumbai, trade union activist Sudha Bhardwaj in Faridabad, and civil liberties activist Gautam Navalakha in New Delhi. Subsequently, Rao, Bhardwaj and Farreira were arrested. Although Navalakha was also arrested, the Delhi high court ordered police not to take him out of the national capital at least until Wednesday. According to unconfirmed reports, others whose residences were raided are Susan Abraham, Kranthi Tekula, Father Stan Swamy in Ranchi and Anand Teltumbde in Goa. The raids were carried out as part of a probe into the violence between Dalits and the upper caste Peshwas at Koregaon-Bhima village near Pune after an event called Elgar Parishad, or conclave, on December 31 last year. Here are their brief profiles:
This time however, the poll panel did not share the overall polling percentage at its briefing.
When Viktor Zicho left Hungary 11 months ago to cycle to Darjeeling in India, he did not dream that he would be quarantined for two months in Bihar.
'For the BJP to lose this virtual pocket borough of the saffron brotherhood demonstrates how resolutely the people of Gorakhpur have turned against the party,' says Amulya Ganguli.
Ajit Balakrishnan rewinds to a decade when mobile phones were unheard of and when an IIM degree had a different purpose and value.
A senior police officer said the terrorists, allegedly dressed in army fatigues, ambushed a Srinagar-bound convoy of the BSF.
