Revolution in India

[Buffalo Souljah]

Maoists trying to cash in on potato farming crisis
December 18, 2009
KOLKATA: With security forces zeroing in on the Maoist core area in Jangalmahal comprising parts
of West Midnapore, Bankura and Purulia, the ultras are busy spreading their network in
neighbouring Hoogly and other parts of West Midnapore.
The target is to organise wage labourers and marginal farmers working in potato fields, whose lot did
not improve despite spiralling potato prices. At a time when everyone is blaming the market or the
futures trading, Maoists are reaching out to the deprived with an immediate solution the people's
court. Maoist activists are promising that they will drag the middlemen to the people's court, impose
huge fines on the offenders and help the marginal farmers.
Small farmers could not get the best of a good harvest last year. They sold their produce at a much
lower price to the middlemen as the crop was badly hit by wart disease.
"We have contacted the farmers in the potato producing areas of South Bengal and told them that
CPI (Maoist) will extend their support to them," said Maoist leader Kishanji, who has been controlling
the Maoist insurgency in Lalgarh.
The Maoist leader has also announced drawn up a charter of demands for rehabilitation of the poor
farmers. "The government has to waive all agricultural loans that farmers took last year. At the same
time the state has to arrange for interest-free loans," said Kishanji, who also supports other demands
of the farmers subsidized rate of fertiliser and potato seeds.

[Buffalo Souljah]

Cop boycott call in Salboni
December 14, 2009
Salboni: Traders of a Salboni bazaar have decided to start a “social boycott” of the joint forces after some of
the personnel allegedly ransacked shops following a blast in which a jawan [soldier] was injured. The boycott
means shops in Pirakata, about 20km from Lalgarh, will not sell provisions to the personnel.
Such a move had forced police to the brink of starvation and pull out a camp from Kalaimuri in April, when
the Lalgarh agitation was at its peak. Aided by Maoists, the villagers demolished the camp after the police left.
They also blocked the supply of essentials to the camp in Ramgarh in May.
Food may not be a problem now because the roads, dug up during the Maoist-backed agitation, have been
repaired. But, at a time the police are desperate to win back villagers’ confidence, the alleged ransacking of
shops spells a public relations disaster.
West Midnapore police chief Manoj Verma denied any ransacking. But stationery shop owner Debashis Ghosh
had a different story to tell. “The police were brought here to maintain law and order but they are doing just the
opposite. We won’t sell any item to them,” he said.
The security forces were engaged in a gun battle with Maoists in Pirakata this evening. It continued
intermittently from 5pm to 9pm. Around 8.30pm, supporters of the People’s Committee Against Police
Atrocities ransacked the local CPM office.
Tea stall owner Pintu Manna said the jawans accused the villagers of being in cahoots with the rebels while
ransacking the shops yesterday. Ghosh alleged that 20 shops were targeted because they had refused to shut
down after the jawan was injured. Verma said the police had asked them to down shutters fearing an encounter
with the Maoists. “That led to a verbal spat. But it’s not true that shops were ransacked.”

[core_1]

those damn Punjabs:





Thats pretty offensive mate

[We Shall Rise Again]

those damn Punjabs:



this comment is an outrage, even if it was ment as humour.

racism has no place in socialism, think you should have that removed from your post.

great to see the maoists extentending there area of influence.

the revolutions driven by the maoists cadres in india and nepeal are providing great insperation, the world over at the moment.

victory to the naxals!

[Buffalo Souljah]

To quell any possible misunderstanding, the comment has been removed.

[core_1]

Yeah just be careful, it sounds quite racist and it's in bad taste.

[Buffalo Souljah]

Yeah just be careful, it sounds quite racist and it's in bad taste.

I think what's more important and what we're getting of subject from here is that the militant CPI faction is winning the support of peasant farmers throughout several southern states in the country, and that their militant cell actually controls three Bengal states at the present (the story can be found here: bannedthought.net/India/Lalgarh/PressReports/2009-12/MaoistsDemandAutonomy-091212.pdf), and is spreading rapidly to other regions, where dissidence is mounting and groups are getting organized. Prime Minister Singh has called the revolt "the largest internal threat" to the country, and the police have in many ways been unsuccessful in quelling the uprising. This is good news for revolutionaries anywhere.

[Buffalo Souljah]

This story came out yesterday:

Maoists claim responsibility for killing
4 'police informers' in West Midnapore
PTI
Saturday, December 19, 2009 14:48 IST
Kolkata: Maoists today claimed the responsibility for killing four persons in West Bengal's
West Midnapore district.
"Anil Chalak, Dayal Chalak, Amol Patra and Sisir Mahato were eliminated by us because they
were working as police informers...We had warned them, but they didn't pay heed and were
eliminated," top Maoist leader Kishenji told PTI over phone from an undisclosed location.
CPI(M) worker Sisir was shot dead yesterday at Dharampur village in the district. On Thursday,
around 500 people barged into Bandhgara and Chandra villages in Lalgarh area and shot dead
Dayal, Anil and Amol.
On Maoists vandalising a sponge iron factory and setting fire to 25 trucks, 12 motorbikes and
three oil tankers yesterday, Kishenji said sponge iron units were a source of pollution.
There are at least 12 sponge iron factories on the West Bengal-Jharkhand border which are
polluting the atmosphere, he said.
"There are several factories along the national highway from Lodhasuli to Chandil and
particularly in Jharkhand's Singbhum district...When our prime minister is going to Copenhegen
to save the world from climate change he should be aware that the people of his own country are
suffering from pollution," he said.

[core_1]

So is the insurgency widely supported by the peasantry?

[Buffalo Souljah]

Hindustan Times
Maoists announce ‘loan waiver’ for farmers
December 17, 2009
Farmers in West Midnapore district of West Bengal may not have to repay their crop loans. The Maoists have
announced a waiver. This is the first time the rebel group has announced such a decision.
“Several peasants who took crop loans over the last two years have suffered losses. So, we have decided
that they don’t have to pay back their loans,” said Koteshwar Rao, alias Kishenji, member of the banned
Communist Party of India (Maoist). “Moreover, no agricultural cooperative, bank or private money lender
will be allowed to charge more than two per cent interest on loans they advance to peasants this year,” he
added.
Cooperative and public sector banks usually charge 7 per cent interest on agri loans. Private moneylenders
charge much more – between 3 per cent and 5 per cent a month. “If anybody, be it from public sector banks
or private moneylender tries to squeeze money out of the farmers, he will be branded a people’s enemy and
tried in a people’s court,” Kishenji threatened. These “courts” usually hand out the death penalty to those
who defy their writ.
“We will look into the matter and take action if anybody lodges a complaint,” said Manoj Verma,
superintendent of police, West Midnapore.
State Bank of India, United Bank, Allahabad Bank, UCO Bank and a few co-operative banks have branches in
this district. No bank executive was willing to speak on the issue. They were also unwilling to share data of
total loans or farmers who may be impacted. “More than 50 per cent of all loans in the district are advanced
by private moneylenders,” several of them said on condition of anonymity.
Maoists wield considerable influence in 180 of India’s 626 districts, where they have killed more than 300
security personnel this year.
Kishenji claimed that farmers have suffered losses and that “no one is in a position to repay the loans. Since
the government did nothing, it was left to us to give relief”.

[Buffalo Souljah]

To sum up a very complex and difficult process: the peasant farmers in many regions of Bengal are fed up with the CPM, the Communist ruling party in those districts, which is about as communist as the Maoist party in China, and which is responsible for brutal repression throughout the area. The CPI is offering alternatives to these disparaged farmers and peasants, and in many ways, the peasantry is taking the bait. In some small villages recruitment is as high as 50 to 100 (this is with populations of around 1,000 people), and the revolution is slowly spreading to urban districts. Kashenji (the CPI leader in Bengal) says that growth is about 50% more than he expected. The road demolitions and sabatoge have been highly successful, with the government failiing the reign in the revolutionary activities and losing control over several prime areas, though most of the roads have been repaired. I think a watershed for the revolutionaries was the government rejecting a CPI proposal for a 15 day ceasefire so the rice farmers could harvest their crops. This has resulted in a loss of confidence in the government's policies and in a number of bandhs, which are single day strikes and boycotts, which the party has used to paralyze the local economy. As has been reported, many peasants are refusing to sell food to the police and see them as more of a disturbance than a help. I hope this paints an adequate portrait of peasant support for the revolutionaries, though I've, in many senses, used rather broad strokes.

[Buffalo Souljah]

So is the insurgency widely supported by the peasantry?



Banned thought has an interesting archive of articles and commentary on the incidents:

bannedthought.net/India/Lalgarh/index.htm#Introduction

Can someone link?

[scarletghoul]

http://www.bannedthought.net/India/Lalgarh/index.htm
Yeah it's a pretty cool archive and definately worth checking out if you want to get a good understanding of Lalgarh.
http://southasiarev.wordpress.com/ and http://indianvanguard.wordpress.com/ are two great blogs for updates on this particular revolution, for those of you who arnt familiar.