Operation Lalgarh

Operation Lalgarh was an armed operation in India against the Maoists who have been active in organising an armed tribal movement alongside a group called the People's Committee Against Police Atrocities (PCAPA). The operation is organised by the police and security forces in Lalgarh, Paschim Medinipur, West Bengal to restore law and order in the area and flush out the Maoists. The area of operation is said to be expanded to 18 police stations in the three Maoist affected districts of Paschim Medinipur, Bankura and Purulia.

The incident has its root in an incident on 2 November 2008. On the way back from laying the foundation stone of Jindal steel plant at Shalboni, the convoy of the chief minister of West Bengal Buddhadeb Bhattacharya and then central ministers Ram Vilas Paswan and Jitin Prasada came under a landmine attack by the Maoists. Though the ministers were unharmed, it hit a police jeep in the convoy and six policemen were grievously injured. The CPI(Maoist) in a press release accepted the responsibility of the explosion and stated clearly that they were opposed to the steel plant on tribal land and that the target of the explosion was Buddhadeb Bhattacharya. In the aftermath of the assassination attempt, the West Bengal Police carried out raids across the Lalgarh area. Due to the influence by ruling party CPI (Marxist), the police atrocities, indiscriminate raids and brutal beatings, resulting in serious injuries to many people, mainly women. People have been subjected to beatings, torture, molestation of women and false cases.

And there was no landmine blast which caused these atrocities by the adivasis; it was their demand of simple development measure such as health centres, schools and roads and the basic means for survival, such as proper prices for forest produce such as the tendu leaves and babui grass, and an end to harassment in the hands of forest officials, timber mafia etc. that drew the ire of the state on them. Which give us a sense of déjà vu with set up of the Police Santras Birodhi Janaganer Committee (PSBJC), or People’s Committee Against Police Atrocities by Sri Chhatradhar Mahata.

...
Wikipedia