Maoist threat: China’s role must be watched

Maoist threat: China’s role must be watched Nitish Sengupta It is one of the supreme ironies of our times that while China has virtually discarded and disowned Mao Zedong, a number of revolutionaries swearing by his name have mushroomed over large tracts of South Asia. Nepal's Maoists have become that country's dominant political party, taking India's intelligence outfits by total surprise. In large areas of at least eight Indian states - Bihar, West Bengal, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh - their cadres call the shots. They raid police stations, kill policemen, loot arms, sabotage railway traffic, destroy railway lines and railway stations and liquidate political opponents at times and places of their own choosing. The government's intelligence agencies and local district... [read full story]