Air strikes on Chhattisgarh-Telangana border 'meant to protect' Indian top mining giants

Counterview Desk
The civil rights group, Forum Against Corporatization And Militarization (FACAM), New Delhi, commenting on aerial bombing on Chhatisgarh-Telangana border in order to “eliminate Maoists”, has said, it isn’t just violation of various international conventions and charters, which bar using Armed Forces and Air Force on the domestic soil in an ‘internal conflict’.
Calling it amounting to war crime and act of genocide, FACAM said, it is meant to facilitate foreign and India corporates like Jindal, Tata, Adani and Ambani, are desiring to have unhindered control over those regions of Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Telangana, Maharashtra which are rich in minerals, worth billions of dollars.

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On Wednesday, 11th Jan 2023, a joint operation was launched by Central Reserve Police Force, Greyhound and CoBRA (Elite Anti Naxal Squad), District Reserve Guard (comprising of Infamous SPOs of Salwa Judum) in the wee hours. According to the varying news reports, the attempt is to target an armed Battalion of CPI (Maoist) headed by a top Naxal Commander. Some reports have clarified that the operation is aided by Helicopters, Drone and Global Positioning Data. The aim is to hit the Telangana-Chhatisgarh-Odisha border region. It has come to our notice that a widespread aerial bombing campaign has been undertaken to that end in Madkanguda, Mettaguda, Bottethong, Sakiler, Madpaaduled, Kannemerka, Pottemangum, Bottalanka, Raspalli and Erpad of Pamed and Kistaram blocks of South Bastar at Chhatisgarh-Telangana Border, from 11 am onwards. According to a recent media report, it was claimed that the drones, supposedly to be engaged in surveillance missions on the Naxal movement, will be operated by the Indian Air Force personnel from the National Technical Research Organisation, which was set up with the aid of US intelligence operatives of NSA, pointing to an all round offensive of State with the help of US.
This is not the first time that aerial bombing campaign has been undertaken in these regions to “eliminate the Maoists”. Last 2 years have seen aerial bombings in April of Year 2021 and 2022. Various villages bombed this time, have previously been bombed in above mentioned drone attacks of 2021 and 2022. It is dangerous that aerial attacks and all out war is unleashed on the people in the name of countering the Maoist movement or Naxalites, which had, until now been considered a socio-economic and political question that requires political attention not military intervention. Regardless, the use of Aerial Attacks, Armed Forces and Air Force on the domestic soil in an ‘internal conflict’ of the country is in violation of various international conventions and charters and amounts to war crimes. It is very important to understand that these very regions of Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Telangana, Maharashtra are rich in minerals worth billions of dollars and the US along with other imperialist powers and help from their Indian lackeys like Jindal, Tata, Adani and Ambani, are desiring to have unhindered control on the same. For this very reason of extraction, a political question of resource and land, has been rampantly turned into a matter of military intervention, similar to the lines of various Latin American Countries where US imperialism has plundered.

Various villages bombed this time have previously suffered from drone attacks in 2021 and 2022

It is also very important to understand that the intensification of Brahmanical Hindutva Fascism is an important tool to aid the loot and plunder of land and resources of the people of our country and militarization plays a very important role in such onslaught. Under Fascism, socio-economic and political questions become a matter of military interventions and continuation of an intensified genocidal war against the people for plunder of resources are termed as “pro-development”. This exponential intensification of military campaigns and trampling of very basic human rights, is also an attempt by the Fascist forces to test the extent of our deafening silence and this onslaught is bound to increase at the very pace, if not opposed unitedly. At this hour of Brute militarization and Genocidal Military repression, Forum Against Corporatization and Militarization calls upon all the democratic, Conscious, justice and peace loving people of the country to unitedly oppose the military repression on people of our own country and demand the Indian state to address the socio-economic and political questions as such, through talks and deliberations. Forum also condemns in the most harsh tone possible, this rampant use of aerial strikes and genocide against the people of the country and demand the following:

1. Immediately stop aerial bombings in Chhattisgarh-Telangana Border and else where, on the people of our own country.
2. Immediately withdraw the troops from Chhattisgarh-Telangana border engaged in Genocidal operation.
3. Indian government must engage in political discourse with the CPI (Maoist)
4. Stop the loot of resources by imperialist backed mining giants.
5. Stop Operation Samadhan-Prahar.

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