Maoists, not militants, killed more personnel
2017 WITNESSED 504 INCIDENTS OF MAOIST VIOLENCE, WHICH IS MORE THAN DOUBLE THE NUMBER OF MILITANT ATTACKS IN J&K
The number of security force personnel killed in Maoist-affected areas was more than that in conflict-hit Jammu and Kashmir this year, the government has said, with Left-wing insurgency accounting for the death of 67 soldiers out of 106 casualties in the first seven months of 2017.
According to data provided by the Union home ministry, Maoist attacks not only claimed more lives but the number of violent incidents was also more in states hit by Left-wing insurgency.
The ministry said 2017 witnessed 504 incidents of Maoist violence, which is more than double the number of militant attacks in J&K where 194 such incidents were reported until July.
Data regarding Left-wing extremism was provided by Union minister of state for home Hansraj Gangaram Ahir in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday while responding to questions posed by Supriya Sule, Heena Vijaykumar, Mohite Patil, PR Sundaram, Satav Rajeev and Dr Jayav- ardhan. Ahir gave the data on incidents in Kashmir while responding to a question posed by TDP’s Jayadev Galla.
Official data said of the 504 incidents in Maoist-hit areas, February witnessed 95 violent incidents, followed by 86 in January and 85 in May. A total of 18 security personnel died in March, followed by 11 in February this year.
Seventy-six violent incidents were reported in April, which also recorded the highest killings of security force personnel. Twenty-five CRPF personnel were killed and six others wounded in an ambush carried out by Maoists in Chhattisgarh’s Sukma district in the same month. The number of civilians killed in Maoist-hit areas this year stands at 103, with April reporting 24 of them.
A low-intensity bomb was recovered in the toilet of an express train on Thursday with a letter that warned of strikes to avenge the recent killing of a Lashkar-e-Taiba militant in Jammu and Kashmir, police said.
The explosive was found in the B3 coach of the Akal Takht Express, which was on its way to Amritsar in Punjab from Howrah in West Bengal.
A railway official stopped the train at around 1.14am and vacated the B3 and B4 coaches at Akbarganj station in Amethi district, 60km from here, after they were alerted about a suspicious packet. “A bomb disposal team rushed to the spot and the device was defused,” superintendent of police Saumitra Yadav said.
A note was also found wrapped around the packet that said: “Dujana ki shahaadat ka badla abb Hindustan ko chukaana padega (India will have to pay for Dujana’s martyrdom)”.
The 27-year-old Dujana was killed in a gunfight with security forces in Jammu and Kashmir on August 1 in what was hailed as a big success for troops that have come under increased attack in the border state.
Dujana was among the longest surviving foreign militants in Kashmir, hailing from the GilgitBaltistan region in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and carried a reward of ₹15 lakh.
The UP anti-terrorism squad (ATS) has begun a probe. The probe would be led by SSP Umesh Srivastava, ATS inspector general Asim Arun said, adding preliminary investigation indicated it was a low-intensity improvised explosive device.
The train was allowed to continue the journey after police inspected all coaches.
The railway police have been asked to remain vigilant while escorting trains across the state.
DUJANA WAS AMONG THE LONGEST SURVIVING FOREIGN MILITANTS IN KASHMIR AND CARRIED A REWARD OF ₹15 LAKH