People's Democracy

NLFT-INPT Intensify Terror Strikes

SOON after the seat distribution between the Congress and INPT was formally announced at a joint press conference in Delhi on January 10, outlawed NLFT extremists, the underground wing of the INPT, intensified their campaign of terror in Tripura in a bid to hijack the February 26 assembly polls in favour of this heinous alliance. It is another thing that the combine, despite the seat distribution announced, has not been able to announce its list of candidates, nor has started any worthwhile poll campaign as yet. In contrast, the Left Front released its list of candidates within 48 hours of the Election Commission’s announcement of the poll schedule on January 11, and its poll campaign is now in full swing, with the formation of booth committees having been completed.

Yet the fact is that the NLFT hit squads have since long been doing the spadework for the INPT’s campaign of terror. On December 22, at Alendrapara in village Karbook on Indo-Bangladesh border, under Amarpur subdivision of South Tripura, local INPT leaders held a secret meeting with NLFT extremists. Then, yet another secret meeting was held there on December 29 night, reportedly in the presence of INPT general secretary Rabindra Debbarma, who had on the same day attended a youth conference of his party. Soon after these secret meetings took place, notices for compulsory contribution to the tune of Rs 30,000 to 40,000 started reaching the local activists and supporters of the CPI(M), Uapajati Ganamukti Parishad and the DYFI-affiliated Tribal Youth Federation.

At about 9 p m on January 14, a group of NLFT extremists and their INPT accomplices raided East Karbook and picked up Chhatramani Debbarma and Upahari Jamatia. While Debbarma is a government school teacher and an active member of Tripura Government Teachers Association, a democratic mass organisation, Jamatia is a former NLFT extremist who had returned to the mainstream after surrendering. Having dragged them some way off, the extremists butchered both of them ruthlessly. A 12-hour Karbook bandh was observed on January 15, at the call of the CPI(M), to protest the carnage.

At about 11 p m on the same night, armed with sophisticated guns, a group of NLFT extremists raided Radhanagar under Fatikroy assembly constituency in North Tripura, forced an LIC agent Satyabrata Paul to come out of his house, and kidnapped him. Observing the scene, his neighbour Binode Bihari Pal (74), a CPI(M) supporter, raised a hue and cry and was instantaneously shot dead by the extremists. As soon as his son (35) and blind daughter (20) came out of the house after hearing the gun shot, the extremists mowed them down with gunfire. The cremation of the three members of this CPI(M)-supporting family took place next day the entire peace-loving population of the area seething with anger and anguish. At the call of the CPI(M), a dawn to dusk Fatikroy bands was observed on January 16 to protest these dastardly and demonic extremist killings during the run-up to the assembly polls. The police combed the area for the culprits, and held one person in connection with the incident. The police believed this triple murder was the handiwork of NLFT extremists who had come from across the Indo-Bangladesh border.

At about 7 p m on January 15, a group of 5 to 7 NLFT extremists raided the house of Jaykumar Debbarma, a key local committee member of the CPI(M), at Tuikarma village near Teliamura under Khowai subdivision, and kidnapped him at gunpoint. He is the chairman of the local village panchayat. While forcing him along, the extremists also set aflame the house of Shukrai Debbarma, a Left Front supporter, situated a kilometre away.

On January 16 evening, armed with deadly weapons, 3 INPT miscreants raided the house of Januram Reang, a CPI(M) activist of Ekjanchharrra village  under Ampinagar assembly constituency in South Tripura, and did him to death after forcing him out of the house.

Earlier in the morning on the same day, another group of NLFT extremists raided the house of Dhananjoy Debbarma, a CPI(M) member of the INPT-dominated Tripura Tribal Area Autonomous District Council, at Champlai village under Khowai subdivision in West Tripura. The extremists kidnapped Dhananjoy’s brother Bijoy Debbarama (30), a school teacher, along with 3 other CPI(M) supporters --- Sushil Debbarma (70), Chandramani Debbarma (50) and Ramesh Debbarma (37).

In all, over the 5 days ending January 17, outlawed NLFT extremists carried out 9 attacks in Tripura, butchering 8 people including two women. Five of them were CPI(M) activists or supporters, two were teachers and two were surrendered extremists. They also kidnapped 5 other people associated with the CPI(M).

The CPI(M) state secretariat has expressed vehement protest against these incidents brought about by a heinous political conspiracy of the unprincipled Congress-INPT combine. The party said the combine is making use of violent NLFT atrocities to thwart peaceful polling and the people’s participation in it. While urging the state government to step up its counter-insurgency operations, the CPI(M) also reiterated its demand that the centre dispatch adequate security personnel as per the requisition of the state, for the purpose of conducting a free and fair poll. The party also urged the Election Commission of India to take appropriate steps in this direction.

JAWANS TARNISH ASSAM RIFLES IMAGE  

On its part, the Left Front government is carrying on with its crackdown on outlawed extremists who are posing a grave threat to the possibility of holding free and fair assembly polls in Tripura. However, taking advantage of the paucity of paramilitary personnel, a section of the Assam Rifles, a few battalions of which are already deployed in the state for counter-insurgency operations, is busy tarnishing the image of this patriotic force by carrying out motivated atrocities. 

In a recent series of successful security encounters with extremists, there were on January 16 cases of exchange of gunfire between extremists and security forces at two places in the state. Acting on a tip-off, jawans of the CRFP and Special Police Officers (SPO), a force created by the state government, raided a hideout of 15-16 NLFT extremists on January 16 morning at Kendraichhara under Takarjala assembly constituency in West Tripura. When the extremists opened fire, the SPO jawans retaliated. After this exchange of fire for a while, the extremists made good their escape in the dense forest under the cover of thick fog. A search of the spot revealed several stains indicating profuse bleeding, leading to the assumption that at least two or three extremists must have got fatally wounded. However, none was wounded in the other encounter that took place in the evening on the same day between TSR jawans and NLFT extremists at Kumudinipara under Subroom subdivision, South Tripura.

The Assam Rifles battalions deployed in Tripura have also carried out a few successful counter-insurgency operations in the recent past. But a few jawans of battalion number 11, along with a surrendered NLFT extremist, raided the houses of CPI(M) supporters under the pretext of searching for outlawed NLFT extremists at some neighbourhoods in Khowai subdivision, West Tripura, and severely beat up some of the innocent house inmates including some women. Besides causing injury to the house inmates, these jawans also warned them against involving with the CPI(M). The local people have also alleged that, accompanied by INPT activists, NLFT extremists have been extorting money from the inhabitants of Manikchara-Kalaranjabari areas adjoining the Ratanpur camp of Assam Rifles at Khowai. The locals also found some of the extortionists roaming about in Assam Rifles vehicles. (INN)