Is the Nagpur based Hitavada News Paper going overboard with the arrest of Arun Ferreira...

(Arun Ferreira with his 2 year old son and a relative)

Blogspots betray proof of Naxal ambitions

May. 21st, 2007 by Kartik Lokhande

NAGPUR:Naxalites, who have their presence in more than half of the Indian states are now trying to ?go global? with the modern-day facility of Internet blogging. It is now out in the open that the Naxalites, or in the recent times the Maoists, have created a flood of the blogspots and Internet user groups to promote their ideology as well as to defame the Government.

Blogging, which has provided a new means of expressing oneself on the internet so that others may read it, has attracted the attention of the Maoists also. Many top websites provide the space for blogspots as well as host the Internet user groups under various categories.

The Maoists have started making full utilisation of these facilities. Even if one types the word Maoist in any search engine, the results display a number of blogspots and user group addresses. Notably, a most popular and controversial user group has several communities titled after some keywords like ?Maoist movement?, ?Naxalite movement?, ?resistance?, ?Naxal revolution?, etc. The links to blogspots also open from these communities.

Interestingly, though the owners of these communities have given their names, possibility is that they might be fake. There are communities that are owned by ?Bhagat Singh? and ?The Chairman?. These communities have ?forum? to discuss various current subjects. Besides, they conduct regular polls on various topics. The introduction of these communities clearly state that they have been formed to promote and discuss Maoism and Naxalism, and to further the ?movement? or ?revolution?.

Some of the pro-Maoist Internet user groups also display newspaper cuttings, poems on the latest happenings at Nandigram, and some even have the videos. Notably, though the members of a single community or user group seem to be just around 200, the combined membership may well account for an unthinkable number. ?Naxalite movement?, ?resistance?, ?Naxal revolution?, etc. The links to blogspots also open from these communities.

Interestingly, though the owners of these communities have given their names, possibility is that they might be fake. There are communities that are owned by ?Bhagat Singh? and ?The Chairman?. These communities have ?forum? to discuss various current subjects. Besides, they conduct regular polls on various topics. The introduction of these communities clearly state that they have been formed to promote and discuss Maoism and Naxalism, and to further the ?movement? or ?revolution?. Some of the pro-Maoist Internet user groups also display newspaper cuttings, poems on the latest happenings at Nandigram, and some even have the videos.

Notably, though the members of a single community or user group seem to be just around 200, the combined membership may well account for an unthinkable number.

Global presence An Internet user group has a map of the Maoist spread across the globe. The map shows the highest density of Maoists in North America, Europe including the United Kingdom, and India. The map highlights the presence of Maoists in African continent, Australia, South America, and the other parts of Asia including Pakistan. This clearly sends the message that in addition to terrorism, Maoism is trying to spread its network across the world.

Source: The Hitavada Newspaper