Kin of Maoists in Bihar bemoan police harassment

Gaya (Bihar), Mar.28 (ANI): Relatives of Maoists leaders in Bihar are finding it difficult to lead normal lives, as they are frequently questioned by the state police on the whereabouts of Maoist leaders.

The villagers said the police was even accusing them of providing information to the Maoists.

"Police officials claim that my son is a Maoist and say that they will kill us and our family. The police have destroyed our houses repeatedly. Where do we live? We should be given a place to live," said Ramdev Yadav, a Gaya resident.

"My main problem is that my brother is a leader of a Maoist group, because of which the police officials are troubling us. If my brother is a Maoist, he has his own life and we have no connection with him. Police have broken my house. My brother lives in a nearby house. I was constructing a new house and the police broke that also," said Dhanik Lal Mandal, another resident of the area.

The Maoist insurgency has gripped nearly a third of the country in its violent tentacles, spreading into the interiors of 20 of India's 28 states. This comes despite strong measures initiated by the federal government in eradicating the ultras.

The Maoists claim that they are fighting for the rights of exploited tribals, marginal peasants and landless labourers, and blame the central government for doing little for the welfare of poor downtrodden people, particularly in the tribal regions.

Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram has termed left-wing extremism as a bigger challenge than terrorism. (ANI)