Intel alerts on Naxal build-up,possible spot of attack ‘sent’ to police,CRPF

But ADG (Naxal) R K Vij said he received them. Asked why his forces had not acted on the specific inputs,Vij replied: “IG and SPs are primarily responsible for operations in the range as we have given them forces according to their requirement. If some coordination is required across ranges or they need more forces,then I step in as the ADG (Naxal).”

At the heart of the security alerts on a gradual build-up by Maoists in the area is a fax reportedly sent on May 9,which notes that “around 50-60 armed and uniformed Maoists are camping at Badhanpal village and can commit an incident at Jeeram Ghati” — the spot of the ambush in which several senior Congress leaders were killed on May 25. The CRPF,Bastar police and SMAC reportedly did not receive this alert.

“Why wouldn’t we act if there was such a specific input? Also,if the situation was so alarming,would you waste time in writing and sending a fax or make a phone call?” said a CRPF officer. “We do receive inputs from them,but did not receive anything specific to Jeeram Ghati,” he added.

Some officials alleged that the alerts were created with back dates to absolve certain officers.

Other alerts were reportedly sent after May 9. However,The Indian Express could not verify whether they reached the various departments or not.

* An alert reportedly sent on May 11 notes the presence of around 10-12 Maoists and 30-35 members of Jan Militia with Maoist leader Sukhram in Marjum village of Tongpal.

*An input reportedly sent on May 12 notes special zonal committee member Ayatu’s presence near a pond at Marjum village. It says he has put up a tarpaulin shed and is camping with 30 Maoists to give them training.

* Another alert reportedly sent on May 13 again mentions Ayatu’s presence at Marjum village,with 25-30 armed members,for the last three days.

Jeeram Ghati lies between Tongpal and Darbha police stations of Sukma and Bastar districts respectively.

With the NIA and a judicial commission probing the security and intelligence failure behind the Darbha attack,these alerts may be important in establishing the negligence of some officers. While Bastar SP Mayank Srivastava was suspended after the incident,Bastar IG Himanshu Gupta was shunted out. The CRPF,meanwhile,has given itself a clean chit.

Incidentally,ADG (Intelligence) Gupta was also in-charge of VIP security. Two alerts issued from his office earlier noted the threat to former Leader of Opposition Mahendra Karma and other Congress leaders.

An April 10 input mentioned that during their “tactical counter-offensive campaign 2013”,Maoists had formed three action teams to kill Karma and Congressmen Vikram Mandavi and Ajay Singh. It said each team comprised four members,armed with 9 mm pistols and shotguns. “Direct their security guards to take special precaution and ensure them proper security according to their status,” the alert said. A week later,an alert sent on April 17,again emphasised the threat and noted that the Maoist team was headed by Rakesh,a member of the “Maoist military company platoon 2”.

All the three Congress leaders mentioned in the alert — Karma,Mandavi and Singh — were travelling in the same vehicle at the time of the attack. While Karma was killed,the other two survived.

Asked why he did not deploy extra security forces or stop the Congress convoy from taking the Jeeram route despite such specific inputs,Gupta replied: “The security aspect should be seen in a holistic manner,considering availability of forces and viability of set-up in such movements. Whether it was a security lapse shall be probed.”

Most of the security forces were deployed for Chief Minister Raman Singh’s May 26 Vikas Yatra at Bijapur and Narayanpur in Bastar. In fact,then Bastar IG Himanshu Gupta was in Bijapur on May 25 to oversee the security operations for the CM’s visit.