Nothing but terrorists

The criminality of Maoists stands revealed,again. Let our political reaction be united....

This newspaper never harboured any illusion about the true nature and criminality of the Maoists. The derailment of the Jnaneswari Express near Jhargram in West Bengal is the sad confirmation of two things. First,Maoists never intended to distinguish between civilians and police-paramilitary in choosing the targets of their systematic bloodbaths.

Last month,they killed 76 security personnel in Chhattisgarhs Dantewada district. On May 17,they blew up a bus there,killing civilians and special police operatives. At 1.30 am this Friday,they committed an unambiguous act of murder against scores of civilians. Second,this disaster was waiting to happen,since the cornered Maoists are increasingly desperate,switching tactics. There will likely be more such attempts in the near future.

This tragedy is a message to the self-appointed spokespersons of civil society. Will they again say that this midnight massacre of sleeping train passengers was a mistake,as some of them did after the May 17 incident? They are not in the habit of feeling sorry for CRPF and police personnel butchered by Maoists,equating defenders of the democratic state and civil societys own rights and liberties with cold-blooded terrorists waging a protracted war to overthrow that state and disinherit us of our freedoms. But surely they will now be disillusioned? After all,there is no debate on who the Maoists or the Maoist-backed Peoples Committee Against Police Atrocities it really doesnt matter which avatar targeted. Will these spokespersons admit that this is the natural denouement of their apologies for Maoists? One fears they may not. Comfortably far from where policemen and passengers lose their lives,they might argue now that this latest brutality was the result of state action,and perversely call for the same to be called off.

Not only is there no question of giving up,but anti-Naxal operations must be provided all possible logistical and tactical support as required on the ground. Political parties across the board and their bosses must cooperate,speak and act responsibly,and that doesnt mean just the collaboration between the Bengal government and the railways on rescue operations seen on Friday. Above all,no mainstream politician should enjoy the space to dilute the nations judgment on its gravest internal security threat and no administration of a Maoist-affected state can claim inability to act. Maoists cannot break the state; and it is because they have been pushed to the wall and are desperate that the state and people of India must win this war at the earliest.