Maoists wary of mobiles

File photograph of Maoists arrested in a raid conducted by Patna police in 2006.

For tech-savvy Maoists in Bihar-Jharkhand, the mobile phone might be a handy tool. However, frequent arrests of top leaders is forcing them to think twice before dialling a comrade. To keep police away from their tracks, the special area committee of the outlawed organisation has now put a strict ban on cellphone use. "Mobile phones have led to the arrest of 10 of our associates in Magadh," according to a report in Lal Chingari, the Maoist mouthpiece. The CPI (Maoist) has asked the cadres to work out an alternative communication system or stick to the traditional method of hiring 'couriers'. Since the formation of the CPI (Maoist) in September 2004 to June this year, five special area committee members and five regional committee members of Bihar-Jharkhand have been arrested, according to Lal Chingari's latest issue. The frequency of arrests have gone up in the past three months.

Hindustan Times