killings in Bastar...recalling earlier Dantewada killings ~ they too had families

Why is there no human rights for Police and army personnel – why those who stand up even for those committing crime, turn silent when security personnel get killed and maimed… remember Tarmetla !!  Tarmetla is in Dantewada District, - South Bastar of Chattisgarh.  Before Indian Independence, the district was part of the princely state of Bastar. After Indian Independence in 1947, Bastar's ruler acceded to the government of India.

After the brutal killings of Congress men in Chattisgarh, the security apparatus is grappling with the fall out of the Maoists attack and the man who is decide is away ~ Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde is in the United States and will return only on Wednesday. Shinde, left New Delhi on 19 May to attend the Indo-US Homeland Security dialogue and  is not cutting short his visit.    It is reported that except Shinde, all other members of the Indian delegation who went to the US to take part the May 20-22 bilateral meetings, have returned home. Some news reports indicate that the Home Minister stayed back in the US after 22 May for private purposes and there was no official engagements to attend.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Congress President Sonia Gandhi, party Vice-PresidentRahul Gandhi, Minister of State for Home RPN Singh, Home Secretary Designate Anil Goswami had visited Chhattisgarh yesterday while Union Home Secretary R K Singh, Director of Intelligence Bureau Syed Asif Ibrahim and other senior Central officials will visit the state tomorrow. The Home Minister yesterday said that he had spoken to Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh and announced the handing over the probe into Saturday’s incident to NIA.

Close on the heels of brutal killing by the Maoists, Arundhati Roy in an interview to CNN-IBN told that the Maoists have no choice but to indulge in ‘counter violence’.

For those with short memory, in April 2010, Maoists ambushed a patrol of CRPF policemen in Chintalnar village in Dantewada district killing of 76 CRPF policemen.   In a ghastly incident, Maoists gunned down 75 security personnel during Operation Green Hunt. The incident took place between 6 am and 7 am, when nearly 80 personnel from the Central Reserve Police Force and the state police were returning after opening a road for the troops, to begin an operation against Maoists.  The CRPF team had been camping in the interiors of Tarmetla jungles  as part of a combing operation.  The attack shook the Nation; the PM & HM [Manmohan & Chidambaram] expressed shock over the attack and grief over the loss of lives. Those killed were servicing the forces of the Nation and had families too…. Sad, that those who always grieve for naxals and other criminals, never care to show any concern for them

With regards – S. Sampathkumar.

28^th May 2013