ROUND THE STATES

New Delhi, 18 October 2006

Militants Seek New Routes

WESTERN BORDER STATES ON ALERT

By Insaf

Punjab, Rajasthan and Gujarat have been put on high alert following recent attempts by Pakistan-based militants to discover new routes for infiltration into India across its Western border.  For the first time in ten years, the Border Security Force (BSF) has foiled attempts by the militants to sneak in through the fenced-border stretch in the Punjab-Rajasthan sector.  The BSF, deployed in the entire border of J&K, Punjab, Rajasthan and Gujarat, encountered its first such infiltration bid in the Amritsar sector on September 14. Two Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists were killed in the encounter. The militants made another attempt ten days later in the Sriganganagar sector in Rajasthan. The BSF at the Sherpur outpost foiled the attempt in a night-long encounter, killing three militants.

Intelligence agencies, the BSF and the Coast Guards have also reported similar attempts in recent weeks through the fenced land route and by boats in the Raan of Kutch sector.  The use of infiltration points in the Western sector is interpreted to mean that the militants, supported by the ISI of Pakistan, are trying to avoid crossing the Line of Control (LoC) in the J&K sector. This is not surprising as such infiltration is becoming increasingly difficult in view of the strict vigil along this border by the security forces. Another reason why the militants are seeking new routes for infiltration is the hurdles they have been facing in the recent past in infiltrating through Bangladesh. All in all, the use of the Punjab-Rajasthan-Gujarat sector is now adding to the worries of the security establishment.

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U.P. in Election Mode

Uttar Pradesh is now fully in election mode.  Three main contenders for power, the ruling Samajwadi Party of Mulayam Singh, Mayawati’s Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and the BJP have finalized their strategies for the Assembly elections early next year.  The Congress is trying to win sufficient seats, around 50 in the 403-member Assembly, to be able to become a crucial player in the post-election scenario.  Mayawati has undertaken a host of aggressive pre-poll moves, using the late Kanshi Ram as her mascot.  She started by unprecedentedly lighting the funeral pyre of her mentor and followed it up by placing Kanshi Ram’s ashes at the “Prerna Sthal” where she addressed a massive rally.  She promised to faithfully follow Kanshi Ram’s political ideals. Chief Minister Mulayam Singh has once again chanted his third front mantra.  He wants all Socialists and Left Parties to join hands against the Congress and the BJP.

The BJP, which has assigned former Chief Minister Kalyan Singh, an OBC, to lead the party’s poll campaign in the State, is now beginning to worry that this may cost it the Brahmin support.  It has, therefore, decided to get Murli Manohar Joshi to oversee the poll preparations both in U.P. and Uttaranchal.  Former Union Minister, B.C. Khanduri is already leading the party’s campaign in the hill State. In fact, he is a potential BJP candidate for the Chief Ministership.  The Congress, on its part, is hoping to revive itself in U.P., encouraged by the recent party rallies in Kanpur and Bareilly. But it cannot achieve this until the SP, BSP and the BJP decline. These three parties have walked away with the Congress’ traditional upper caste-Muslim-Dalit supporters in the last two decades. The party has only 25 members in the present Assembly.

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 Manipur Agitation Against AFSPA

Disturbing reports are emanating from far-flung Manipur and Assam. Violence broke out in both the States during President Kalam’s visit earlier in the week. Manipur, where the Assembly election is scheduled early next year, has again threatened a violent agitation in protest against the continuing imposition of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA).  President Kalam, who is also the Supreme Commander of the armed forces, was welcomed with a total bandh in the State’s Capital Imphal, when he landed there for a day’s visit on Monday to address the tenth convocation of Manipur University. The nine-hour strike was called by the Apurba Lup, an umbrella organization of various bodies protesting for long against the Act. The agitation has picked up following the Reddy Committee report which has recommended the repeal of the Act.  It has yet to be accepted by the Government.

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ULFA Bullets For Extortion

Assam was rocked by two explosions at Guwahati and Bongaigaon on the eve of the President’s visit to open a national workshop-cum-exhibition on commercialization of bio-diesel in the North-East.  The blasts were inspired by the ULFA, which has revived its violent and extortion activities. The dreaded outfit is following an almost-forgotten practice of Mizo rebels: sending boxes of bullets to targets of extortion bids as a warning of what might follow if they failed to pay up. The Mizoram-based militant groups, remember, used to hand-deliver a packet of live bullets to a person to be killed. The ULFA activists have adopted the Mizo militants’ method with a twist.  Its bullets do not necessarily mean death; they give them an idea of how much time he has to pay up. The ULFA “letters with bullets” are now being sent even to petty traders and Government employees.

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Congress-BJP Rift

Madhya Pradesh Government’s recent decision to lift the ban preventing the Government employees from attending the RSS shakhas has caused a direct BJP-Congress confrontation.  Reacting sharply to the Congress President Sonia Gandhi’s letter to President Kalam, demanding the restoration of the ban, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan is preparing for a counter-attack on the Congress.  He believes that the Congress was trying to mislead the people and that the demand for lifting the ban was “illegal and a violation of the Constitution.” The RSS, according to the BJP leaders, is only a cultural organization, not a political or religious body, and the Government servants had every right to participate in the RSS.  Chouhan has planned to explain to the President his Government’s case, once Dr. Kalam reacts to Sonia Gandhi’s objection.

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Kerala’s Anti-Social Activities Bill

Kerala’s Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Bill, 2006, which was pending in the Assembly, has been re-drafted to give it more teeth.  It now provides punishment for copyright violations, land grabbing, unauthorized money lending and environmental degradation.  The re-drafted Bill also includes a clause for the prevention of human rights violations. Considering the threat posed by piracy of films, music and publishing industry, the Bill has provisions to initiate action against those who violate the copyright law for commercial purposes by bringing out pirated versions of the published material. It also has a provision to prevent illegal use of computer or digital network for personal profit. The Bill also has provisions to crack down on “loan sharks” who resort to physical violence or seize property to realize the money lent in violation of banking rules.

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 Naveen Clips Bureaucrats’ Wings

Orissa’s Chief Minister, Naveen Patnaik has clipped the wings of the bureaucrats in the State. The trend to fly off to Delhi at the drop of a hat will have to stop. They will have to spend more time at their headquarters. The State Government has asked the senior IAS officers not to leave the State without the knowledge of their respective Ministers and the Chief Minister’s Office.  They have also been asked not to visit Delhi too often for work which can be handled by the Resident Commissioner, based in the Union Capital. The move is a part of the ongoing process undertaken personally by the Chief Minister to tone up the administration. Earlier, the Chief Minister had instructed all the senior IAS officers in the State to visit district headquarters every month and to spend one night at the Block headquarters. ----INFA

 (Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)