MAOISTS RELEASE 34 ‘ABDUCTED’ TRIBALS

Maoists early on Wednesday morning released 34 tribals in Chhattisgarh’s south Bastar district of Sukma after keeping them in captivity for around 72 hours, police said.

The 34 tribals were produced in a ‘jan adalat’ or kangaroo court set up by Maoists in the forested village of Tolabarti under Jagargonda police station in Sukma district before being set free, police sources said. “All the villagers who had gone missing have returned to their village”, Bastar range inspector general of police Sunderraj P. told this newspaper. Seven tribals, hailing from the village of Kunded in Jagargond area, declared by Maoists as a liberated zone, were abducted by armed Naxals in the late hours of July 18 when they were attending a social function in a neighbouring village.

As many as 17 tribals from the village had ventured into the jungle on July 19 to secure release of the seven abducted villagers from Maoist captivity. According to the police, the ultras had sent back two of them to their village to bring with them ten villagers for their ‘trial’ in the ‘jan adalat’ on charges of being ‘police informers’.

All the 34 villagers were later produced in the kangaroo court which let them off with a warning not to cooperate with police in future, sources said. “Technically, it is not abduction (of villagers by Maoists). Such incidents happen in the remote villages in Bastar wherein Maoists summon villagers and let them off with a warning. It is a way of demonstrating their influence over the locals by the Maoists”, Mr Sunderraj said.

According to the police, the local tribals never report such incidents to the police fearing reprisals from Maoists. They keep mum even if the rebels kill their near and dear ones after abducting them.