Click to play videoNew Delhi: Days after the most violent Naxal attack in a police camp in West Bengal’s Silda village, where 24 jawans of the Eastern Frontier Rifles (EFR) were killed, an exclusive intelligence report to which CNN-IBN has access to, reveals that the dreaded Naxal leader Koteshwar Rao alias Kishanji could have been let-off by the West Bengal government.
Intelligence sources in New Delhi have told CNN-IBN that Kishenji was in Sirsi village, just 3 kilometers away from the Midnapore town when the Naxal attack was going on in Silda on Monday, February 15.
The intelligence traced his mobile tower and passed on his (Kishenji’s) coordinates to the state police, which surprisingly chose not to act on the intelligence information.
Intelligence was able to track down Kishanji by tracking his phone calls to journalists, claiming the attack.
Earlier CNN-IBN had reported of the intelligence warning about a possible Naxal attack in Sildah to the West Bengal government.
The intelligence input was specific and could have prevented the attack. The state intelligence had sent two specific alerts to the government on November 23, 2009 and February 13, 2010
“Mobile squad of Maoists is planning to attack Sildah camp of the joint forces,” said one alert.
Another intelligence alert warned that Naxals were infiltrating among students in Sildah College. All joint forces camps required to have two local police officers present at all times. However, the local police officers posted in Sildah camp left just 30 minutes before the attack
The interrogation of local police officers has revealed discrepancies in their statements. Bullets fired by Naxals during the attack were those that are used by the state police, leading officials to suspect that ammunition from the district police armoury reached Naxals.
Meanwhile, West Bengal's home secretary Ardhendu Sen said, "There had been some intelligence inputs and the troops should have been more alert. However, the exact site of the attack was not known. It is not true that the EFR jawans did not retaliate but it cannot be denied that there were several security lapses and a departmental inquiry is going to be held."
The home secretary's statement comes a day after Bengal's top cop said that there was an intelligence failure.
West Bengal Director General of Police Bhupinder Singh had said, "Because it is not expected that inside the town the Naxals would enter in the numbers that they did and attacked."
Meanwhile, the West Bengal Chief Minister, Buddhadeb Bhattacharya has admitted lapses and has ordered an enquiry, after former National Security Advisor, now West Bengal governor M K Narayanan has also pointed out the lapses in a meeting called on Wednesday.
Buddhadeb Bhattacharya said, “There are two versions in the newspapers today that of the DGP and that of the chief secretary, I have told them that this cannot happen and they have to be on the same page.”
At 2 pm (IST) on Monday, the day of the attack, the state intelligence had again warned that Maoist mobilisation was taking place at Silda. The Naxals struck at 5 pm (IST).
Even if the EFR jawans had known, they would have been helpless because their rifles did not work. It did not fire after the first bullet.
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