Mar 28, 2016, at 10:30 pm
On early reports, at least 72 people have been killed and more than 300 injured in a suicide blast inside the Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park in the Iqbal Town area of Lahore, the provincial capital of Punjab Province, on March 27, 2016. Lahore's District Coordination Officer Muhammad Usman stated, "The bomber managed to enter the park and blew himself up near the kids' playing area where kids were on the swings". Significantly, a large number of people, mostly Christians were present in the park, celebrating Easter [Christendom's holiest day].
Telangana: Diminishing Rebel Spaces
Mar 07, 2016, at 09:00 pm
At least eight members of the Venkatapuram 'area committee' of the Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist), which operates in the Bhadrachalam area of Khammam District in Telangana, were killed in an encounter with Security Force (SF) personnel along the Telangana-Chhattisgarh border on March 1, 2016. The Telangana Greyhounds had launched the operation after receiving information about the presence of Maoist leaders in the region, resulting in the encounter which took place in the Sakler area of Sukma District in Chhattisgarh State. Along with the dead bodies of the eight slain militants, SF personnel also recovered an AK-47 rifle, three Self-Loading Rifle (SLRs), several .303 rifles, and ammunition from the encounter spot.
Feb 22, 2016, at 10:34 pm
As the State Government consolidated the stabilization process through 2015, Tripura emerged as the most peaceful State in the entire Northeastern region of India in terms of insurgency-related fatalities. While 273 such fatalities were recorded across the region, including 62 civilians, 49 Security Force (SF) personnel and 162 militants, Tripura did not account for single insurgency-linked death. Even Mizoram, one of the least insurgent-affected States in the region, and which has been at peace since the collapse of the insurgency in 1986, witnessed three fatalities (all SF personnel) in 2015.
Feb 15, 2016, at 10:38 pm
On February 11, 2016, Karachi Special Investigation Unit (SIU) personnel shot dead two bank robbers, identified as Arsalan Iqbal and Dilawer aka Murad aka Tiger, in an encounter in Korangi Town in Karachi, the provincial capital of Sindh. The Sindh Government had announced a reward of PKR 1 million for their arrest. Giving details of the robberies, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Mohammed Farooq Awan of SIU Karachi disclosed that during the current year the duo had committed three bank robberies. They had looted PKR 1.2 million from the Allied Bank Branch in Korangi Town on January 8, 2016, the first robbery incident of the year. In the second incident on January 20, 2016, the two, along with over half a dozen other robbers, looted PKR 375,000 from JS Bank in Block-7, in the Gulistan-e-Jauhar area of Gulshan Town. The third case of robbery was reported on January 28, 2016, when nine armed robbers, including Iqbal and Dilawar, barged into JS Bank branch near Sohrab Goth in Gadap Town and looted PKR 4 million.
Feb 09, 2016, at 01:05 am
At least 12 persons, including four Frontier Corps (FC) officials, were killed and another 38 persons injured on February 6, 2016, when a suicide bomber blew himself up near an FC vehicle in the Multan Chowk area of Quetta, the provincial capital of Balochistan. The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP)'s 'central spokesperson' Mohammad Khorasani claimed the incident, declaring, in an email statement, "The TTP's Special Task Force (STF)'s unit carried out the attack that targeted the convoy of Security Forces."
Political Wranglings and a Spike in Extremism
Feb 01, 2016, at 09:44 pm
On January 25, 2016, a Dhaka Court ordered Bangladesh's former Prime Minister (PM) and head of the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Begum Khaleda Zia to appear in court on March 3, 2016, to answer the charge of sedition. Momtaz Uddin Ahmad Mehdi, a lawyer with the Bangladesh Supreme Court (SC) and a supporter of the ruling Awami League (AL) had filed a case alleging that Zia's remarks about the Liberation War of 1971 were seditious.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: Terror Untamed
Jan 26, 2016, at 01:19 am
Shocking memories of the gruesome attack on December 16, 2014, at the Army Public School (APS) Peshawar were revived when terrorists stormed the Bacha Khan University in the Charsadda District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) on January 20, 2016, killing at least 21 persons and causing injuries to another 35. The victims included 17 students, two gardeners, a caretaker and a professor. The attack ended with all the four attackers shot dead after a three hour operation. Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG), Mardan Range, Mohammad Saeed Wazir, who led the operation, declared, "Our cops fought bravely to shoot dead all the four attackers one by one. They were wearing suicide jackets but none of them could succeed in blowing himself up." The mastermind of the APS Peshawar attack, Khalifa Umar Mansoor akaAurangzeb, of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP)'s Geedar faction claimed the attack through a post on his Facebook page. However, the 'central spokesperson' of the TTP, Muhammad Khorasani, denied any involvement stating, "The TTP and itsamir Maulana Fazalullah have nothing to do with the attack." The TTP has three prominent factions - Jamaat-ul-Ahrar (JuA), the Geedar faction and the Mehsud faction (also known as Sajna faction). The parent TTP is led by Mullah Fazlullah.
Mizoram: Unresolved Challenges
Jan 19, 2016, at 01:33 am
On January 8, 2016, a meeting convened by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (UMHA) on the issue of repatriation of Brus in six relief camps in Tripura remained inconclusive. "We informed the Home Ministry officials that the Brus refused to return to Mizoram despite repeated arrangements made by Mizoram Government in the relief camps for the repatriation," Mizoram Chief Secretary Lalmalsawma stated. Lalmalsawma also disclosed that the time or venue of the next meeting was not fixed to discuss the issue in future as the Mizoram Government is of the opinion that it would be a futile exercise if more repatriation attempts are made in future.
Punjab: Increasing Vulnerabilities
Jan 12, 2016, at 03:19 am
Editor, SAIR; Executive Director, ICM & SATP Two major terrorist attacks - the assault on the Indian Air Force (IAF) Base at Pathankot through January 2, 2016, and January 3, 2016; and the strike at the Dinanagar Police Station in adjacent Gurdaspur on July 27, 2015 - have not only exposed tremendous vulnerabilities in Punjab, but gaping holes in national Counter Terrorism (CT) response protocols, capacities and capabilities. The Pathankot incident is particularly worrisome, providing an index of the extraordinary weakness in the protection of the country's critical strategic assets. The IAF Base constitutes the frontline air defence for any confrontation with Pakistan, and yet the terrorists succeeded in penetrating into the campus and inflicting significant casualties. This was despite nearly 20 hours of clear warning, a definitive identification of the intended target, and a systemic response that had been initiated fairly early on January 1, 2016, after central intelligence agencies picked up conversations by the terrorists with their handlers and their families, and the Punjab Police received specific information about their movements and intention from the 'abducted' Superintendent of Police whose car was used by the terrorists. If the terrorists had the additional advantage of surprise, the damage they could have inflicted can now only be imagined. Evidently, the Pathankot IAF Base would not be unique in its vulnerabilities among various defence and security establishments across the country.
Dec 22, 2015, at 02:16 am
Research Assistant, Institute for Conflict Management On December 17, 2015, the Jharkhand Police killed a People's Liberation Front of India (PLFI) 'area commander', identified as Dinesh Sahu (28) in an encounter, at Bandha village under the Tupudana Block of Ranchi District in Jharkhand. He was wanted in at least 29 cases in the Khunti District. Khunti Superintendent of Police (SP) Anish Gupta disclosed, "He (Sahu) was wanted in several cases of rape, murder and extortion. Reacting on a tip-off by one of our informers, we found him and shot him dead." Four of Sahu's accomplices, however, managed to escape. Arms and ammunition were recovered from the encounter site. PLFI is a splinter group of the Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist).
Dec 14, 2015, at 10:02 pm
Research Assistant, Institute for Conflict Management On December 12, 2015, Meghalaya Police recovered the body of a Police constable, Khomraj Bhattarai, from a shallow grave near the Tapa Darengchi area in the North Garo Hills District. Bhattarai was abducted along with another person, identified as Muslo Hussain, by Garo National Liberation Army (GNLA) militants from Rongdongre village on November 6, 2015. Muslo Hussain was later released unharmed on November 19. Police suspect that GNLA 'area commander' Pilliport D. Shira was responsible for the abduction and subsequent execution of the Policeman.
India-Africa and a sea of opportunities
Dec 02, 2015, at 07:04 pm
India and Africa are among the fastest growing economies today, set to accrue a huge advantage from their alliance. The Dark Continent’s arrival into the limelight in India has been long overdue writes Jayalakshmi Sengupta who heads the Delhi bureau of IBNS
Chhattisgarh: Crumbling Bastions
Dec 01, 2015, at 02:17 am
Research Assistant, Institute for Conflict Management A Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) cadre was killed by a joint squad of Security Forces (SFs), comprising of the 204th Battalion of the Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (CoBRA), District Reserve Group (DRG) and District Force, at Kurcholi village forest under the Basaguda Police Station limits in Bijapur District on November 25, 2015.
Nov 23, 2015, at 10:34 pm
Research Fellow, Institute for Conflict Management In a dramatic development, on November 11, 2015, Bangladesh Guard Border personnel handed over Golap Baruah alias Anup Chetia, the 'general secretary' of the undivided United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) and his two prison mates - Babul Sharma and Laxmiprasad Goswami aka Shakti Prasad who were arrested along with him in Bangladesh in 1997 - to personnel of India's Border Security Force (BSF) near the Dawki border point in the Sylhet District of Bangladesh. Chetia was brought to the Indian capital, New Delhi, on the same day. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) placed him under arrest in New Delhi a day later, in connection with a murder incident in 1998 in Golaghat (Assam). On the same day, a court in Delhi issued a six day transit remand to the CBI to hold Chetia. Chetia was brought to Guwahati, Assam, on November 18, 2015, where a special CBI court forwarded him to a further five days in CBI custody. Chetia has long been wanted in India to stand trial in various cases of extortion, abduction, murder and attempt to murder.
Nov 09, 2015, at 11:06 pm
Research Associate, Institute for Conflict Management Malik Mohammad Younis, a prominent elder of the Salarzai tribe, was killed, while another three, including two of his sons, were injured when their vehicle hit an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) in the Gulu Shah area of Salarzai tehsil (revenue unit) in Bajaur Agency in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) on November 3, 2015. Malik Mohammad Younus was an active pro-government leader and was heading the Peace Committee in the Salarzai tehsil of the Agency.
Nov 02, 2015, at 09:49 pm
Research Associate, Institute for Conflict Management At least 27 persons including 13 children were killed and 36 were injured in a suicide blast targetting a 9th Muharram (Shia mourning period) procession near a park in the Lashari area of Jacobabad District in Sindh in the evening of October 23, 2015. The blast took place at about 7:30 pm when a Muharram procession, which started from the Dargah Hajan Shah, was passing through the Lashari Muhalla (neighbourhood).
Oct 26, 2015, at 11:39 pm
Research Assistant, Institute for Conflict Management On October 14, 2015, at least seven people, including three contestants of the upcoming Local Government Elections (LGEs), were killed and 13 were injured when a suicide bomber blew himself up at the camp office of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Member of National Assembly (MNA) Sardar Amjad Khosa in the Taunsa Sharif city of Taunsa tehsil (revenue unit) in Dera Ghazi Khan District, Punjab Province. Jama'at-ul-Ahrar (JuA, Group of the Free), a breakaway faction of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) claimed responsibility for the attack. JuA 'spokesman' Ehsanullah Ehsan, in an email statement, vowed that TTP-JuA attacks would continue until Sharia'h (Islamic) law was fully implemented in Pakistan: "We want to make it clear to the Pakistani rulers that your policies and military operations can't weaken our determinations, rather our firm determination helps us in achieving and attacking our targets."
Oct 20, 2015, at 07:19 pm
Research Associate, Institute for Conflict Management On October 5, 2015, three unidentified assailants tried to slit the throat of Luke Sarkar (52), Pastor of the Faith Bible Church, at his house in the Ishwardi upazila(sub-District) of Pabna District. He survived the attack with minor injuries. Later, on October 12, 2015, five Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) terrorists, including its Pabna 'regional chief' Rakibul Islam Rabbi aka Rakib were arrested over this murder attempt.
Maharashtra: Maoists pushed against the Wall
Oct 05, 2015, at 09:46 pm
Research Assistant, Institute for Conflict Management A 'central committee' (CC) member of the Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist), Sridhar Srinivasan alias Krishnan Srinivasan alias Vijay alias Vishnu, who was active in Mumbai, Pune and Vidarbha regions of Maharashtra, died of a heart attack on August 18, 2015, a CPI-Maoist press statement released on September 21, 2015 disclosed. Paying tribute to the deceased CC member, the CPI-Maoist said, "Comrade Sridhar's martyrdom is a major blow to the movement". Srinivasan was arrested by Maharashtra ATS in 2007 and after being convicted and serving a six year jail term, was released in August 2013. According to the press release, he continued to work for the outfit and he died on his way to meet his comrades.
Sep 22, 2015, at 06:52 pm
Research Associate, Institute for Conflict Management In a historical step forward, Nepal's second Constituent Assembly (CA) endorsed "Nepal's Constitution" with overwhelming two-thirds majority on September 16, 2015. The Constitution came into effect after President Ram Baran Yadav announced its commencement at 17:00 hrs on September 20, 2015, during the last meeting of the CA.
How free are our children in independent India
Sep 08, 2015, at 08:29 pm
Every day, as the dawn breaks at the small village of Shivnagar, a small hamlet in Bihar, Nutan has to get up from bed with reddened, puffy eyes still half-closed with sleep. Within half an hour she has to get ready and trot along with her parents to the brick kiln near their village. Nutan can’t think of going to school even in her remotest dreams, as no one from her family had ever made it to. Hailing from the extremely poor Mahato community at the furthest corner of the district of Munger, this 12 year old girl has to work at the brick kiln 12 hours a day, while most of her friends go to school every day. As the evening comes, back home she finds herself doing the dishes and helping her mother in every day family chores, till her wobbly legs ache in pain and eyes are swollen with deep slumber.
Aug 31, 2015, at 09:47 pm
Research Fellow, Institute for Conflict Management August 24, 2015, turned out to be the bloodiest day in Nepal since theComprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) of November 21, 2006, when the then Nepal Prime Minister (PM) Girija Prasad Koirala and Chairman of the Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist [CPN-M, now known as Unified Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist (UCPN-M)] Pushpa Kamal Dahal aka Prachanda, agreed on the terms to bring the Maoist insurgency to an end. On August 24, 2015, at least 20 people - 17 policemen, including the Superintendent of Police of the Seti Zone, Laxman Neupane, and three protesters - were killed and over 100 others were injured in clashes between Tharuhat activists and the Police at Shankarpur area of Tikapur Municipality in Kailali District. The protestors were demanding a Tharuhat Autonomous Province.
Aug 11, 2015, at 06:48 pm
Editor, SAIR; Executive Director, Institute for Conflict Management & South Asia Terrorism Portal A 'historic accord' was signed between the Government of India and the largest rebel Naga group, the National Socialist Council of Nagalim - Isak Muivah (NSCN-IM) on August 3, 2015, at once raising hopes and apprehensions against the context of what has been India's most enduring insurgency. While few details of the actual contents of the agreement are yet available, the Centre's principal interlocutor R.N. Ravi has clarified that the 'accord' is, in fact, a "framework agreement" that spells out the terms of a "final settlement". Reports suggest that such a final settlement would be worked out in three months, and would exclude any claims to sovereignty or alterations in state boundaries.
Jul 29, 2015, at 03:18 am
Research Assistant, Institute for Conflict Management On July 20, 2015, at least 62 persons, including three Security Force (SF) personnel, were injured when agitating cadres of Terai-based parties clashed with the Police in several areas of Janakpur, Mahottari, Parsa and Saptari Districts in the Terai region of Nepal.
Chhattisgarh: Uncertain Rumblings
Jul 21, 2015, at 04:21 am
Research Associate, Institute for Conflict Management The Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) abducted four auxiliary constables [former Salwa Judum cadres] of the Chhattisgarh Police near Sukanpali village under Kutru Police Station area in Bijapur District on July 13. Their dead bodies were found strewn on a road near Gudma village, close to the place of abduction, two days later. Maoists claimed responsibility for the killings, accusing them of participating in anti-Maoist operations. According to reports, Maoists stopped a passenger bus on the Kutru-Sukanpali road, in the evening of July 13 and abducted Mangal Sodi and Majji Rama who were travelling in it. A few minutes later, Raju Tela and Jayram Yadav, who were travelling on a motorcycle, were abducted from the same location. Three of them were posted in Kutru Police Station and one was posted in Bedre. They were returning to their base camps after collecting their salaries.
Jul 06, 2015, at 09:42 pm
Research Fellow, Institute for Conflict Management The Islamic State (IS) has started making significant territorial gains within war-torn Afghanistan. IS, according to the US Department of State's Country Reports on Terrorism 2014, has emerged as the most dreaded global terror outfit, and has captured large parts of Syria and Iraq. According to June 2015 reports, fighters loyal to IS have seized sizeable territories in Afghanistan as well. Reports citing witnesses, who have fled from Nangarhar Province due to fierce clashes between forces loyal to IS and those loyal to the Afghan Taliban, claim that IS has pushed the Taliban out from areas previously under Taliban control. Haji Abdul Jan, a tribal elder from Achin District (Nangarhar Province) stated,
Jun 23, 2015, at 09:16 pm
Research Assistant, Institute for Conflict Management On June 16, 2015, cadres of the Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) killed a 42-year old Christian pastor, Ramesh Majhi, of Puijhari village under the M. Rampur Police Station limits in Kalahandi District of Odisha, suspecting him of being a 'Police informer'. A Maoist poster recovered near the body stated that Majhi was punished at the Praja Court ('people's court') for working as a 'Police informer'.
Jun 08, 2015, at 09:42 pm
Research Assistant, Institute for Conflict Management On June 4, 2015, 18 Army personnel were killed and another 11 were injured when militants ambushed a convoy of 46 troopers of the 6 Dogra Regiment of the Army, at Moltuk, near the India-Myanmar border, in the Paralong area of the Chandel District of Manipur. The militants first targeted the convoy, which was on a road opening patrol (ROP). Initiating the attack with an Improvised Explosive Device (IED), the militants subsequently opened fire using Rocket Propelled Grenades (RPG) and small arms. The Army also claimed to have killed a militant in the retaliatory firing.
Bihar and Jharkhand: Subdued Disturbances
May 28, 2015, at 05:04 pm
Research Assistant, Institute for Conflict Management A top ranking woman Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) cadre, identified as Sarita aka Urmila Ganjoo, was killed and another cadre was injured in an encounter with Security Forces (SFs) in the Gaya District of Bihar on May 17, 2015. Sarita was a member of the erstwhile Bihar-Jharkhand 'special area committee', which was replaced by the East Bihar Eastern Jharkhand Special Area Committee (EBEJSAC), and carried a reward of INR 1.5 million on her head. Acting on a tip-off that some Maoists had gathered near the Tiletand locality to collect INR 20 million as 'levy' from a construction company on the night of May 16, four companies of the Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (CoBRA) reached the place. In the ensuing encounter, which continued throughout the night, Sarita was killed and another Maoist was injured, Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) Inspector General (IG), Bihar, Arun Kumar disclosed. A walkie talkie, an INSAS rifle and a haul of ammunition were recovered from the spot. The SFs also arrested 10 Maoists, including CPI-Maoist's Magadh Zone Secretary, Upendra Baitha alias Sanjeevan, and 'Treasurer' of the 'Magadh Zone', Gorelal Ramani. Ramani carried a reward of INR 300,000 on his head; while Baitha had a bounty of INR 25,000.
May 18, 2015, at 10:27 pm
Research Associate, Institute for Conflict Management On May 12, 2015, Ananta Bijoy Das (32), a progressive writer, blogger, editor of science fiction magazine Jukti, and an organizer of Gonojagoron Mancha (People's Resurgence Platform), was hacked to death, using machetes, by four assailants at Subidbazar Bankolapara residential area of Sylhet city, for writing against religious fundamentalism. Within hours of the murder, a Twitter username "Ansar Bangla 8", an apparent reference to Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT, Volunteer of Allah Bangla Team), a militant outfit, expressed their delight and claimed responsibility for killing the blogger. The same page, Ansar Bangla 8, later Tweeted: "Al-Qaeda in Indian Sub-Continent (AQIS) is taking responsibility of killing Ananta Bijoy." AQIS, in another message posted on justpaste.it declared: "We want to say to atheist bloggers! We don't forget and we will not forget others who insult our beloved Prophet Muhammad and Allah. Another file closed! Stay tuned for next target."