Badly cooked up ‘plot’ makes up for a poor curry
Friends and former operatives of the Communist Party of India, Maoist, have scoffed at the claims made by Additional Director General of Police Parambir Singh on the recent arrests of activists and the ‘larger conspiracy’ involving them.
According to sources, there is a clear demarcation between underground and over ground cadres in the organisation and there is no open communication and physical interface between the two. Moreover, the responsibilities are clearly spelled out and no over ground person is tasked with procuring arms and ammunition.
“The Maoists have assigned specific roles to the cadre and there is absolutely no question of an over ground person being given a sensitive responsibility like procuring and purchasing arms and ammunition.
There is a People’s Guerrilla Army which carries out such transactions. So, there is no question of arrested activist V. V. Rao being given such an onerous task,” said a person on request of anonymity.
Moreover, Rao is a well-known person, who has a regular interface with people, with whom he shares his ideas and poetry. He loved writing but did not use a computer. Rao at, 78, is not computer savvy.
“The fiction being spun is beyond hilarity. Rao was under surveillance of the State police. Moreover, he is a fullfledged over ground person who does not even know how to use a cell phone. His daughters dial the number on his cell phone and give it to him to speak; forget all about him using a computer to send emails. The police should at least know the fundamentals of an organisation before accusing anyone of any wrongdoing,” said a friend of Rao.
As per party norms, cadre members have multiple nicknames. As they change places, their names change and so do their identities. Even in modern times, the minutes of their meetings are written in code. There are rules of communication, which are still adhered to.
“No person signs documents using their original name or even initials, as is being shown in the so-called incriminating letters. If it were a party communication, as is being alleged, then the cadre will sign off only with the party name. Nor will they brazenly write ‘money has been sent’, reveal identities of comrades or even their locations,’ said the source.
The police claimed on Friday that underground operatives communicated with over ground operatives through messages sent through a courier. These messages were sent in either password-protected text in a device or as a typed message.
The police told the media all these letters were cyclostyled and not handwritten. This includes the allegedly explosive letter from Rona Wilson that first made a mention of the plot to assassinate the prime minister.
According to the police 'thousands' of letters have been procured from the homes of the accused activists, which contain incriminating evidence. However, only nine letters have been shown in court, as part of search and seizure; but these have not been shared with the defendants. One of the letters says, ‘‘Gonsalves has stated, Ganpati had said finance was expected. Rao was given money and he was to procure.’’ But VV Rao does not use a cell phone or a computer. These letters are fake, said the source.
The police has alleged party cadres used a courier to send two cash transactions of Rs 5 lakh and Rs 10 lakh; this was done to avoid leaving a money trail to the bank account, it is claimed.
But as per information shared by party aides, cadres are not encouraged to hold on to communication and they do not store letters, knowing the likelihood of being picked up.
“The police should have concocted more tenable allegations than such fictitious ones, which shows there is a more to the sinister plan,” said the source.