Maoists using SMS messages in psychological war

Ranchi, Nov 2 - Maoist rebels are using SMS messages to wage psychological war on Jharkhand police officials.Sukhdeo Singh, principal secretary to Chief Minister Madhu Koda, received an SMS Wednesday from the mobile number of Chatra district Deputy Commissioner (DC) Puja Singhal that Maoist rebels had killed the district superintendent of police (DSP) along with 25 security personnel in an ambush.'When the Chatra DC was contacted it was found that the information sent through the SMS was wrong,' an official told IANS on condition of anonymity.

The same evening, Singhal received an SMS from the DSP's cell phone that said: 'Please come, we are holding a janata durbar'. On contacting the DSP, Singhal realised that he had not sent any SMS. 'It seems that Maoist rebels want to trap the officials by sending misleading messages and are trying to put psychological pressure on the government,' said the official.Police sources said Maoist rebels tap the wireless messages of officials regularly.

In turn, police have arrested some Maoist leaders like Madanji by tapping their mobile phones. Since that arrest, the outlawed Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) has issued a circular banning the use of mobile phones by its cadres.Maoist rebels are active in 18 of the 24 districts of Jharkhand. More than 1,000 people, including 290 security personnel, have been killed in the last seven years in Maoist-related violence.

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