Mujahideen and Naxal militants team up in terror double act as security fears rise ahead of Chhattisgarh's polls

The banned Indian Mujahideen (IM) and Maoists in Chhattisgarh are joining forces in a terror coalition, top intelligence and security sources say.

Ahead of the Assembly elections in the state, the emergence of a new alliance between the militants is the latest headache for India's security establishment.

The latest sign of this was the massive seizure of bombs and explosives from the IM cadre in the Maoist stronghold of Jharkhand recently.

New threat: Two IEDs, weighing 25 kg each, were recovered from the interiors of Bastar

The sources say there could be a deal between the two groups.

"It is suspected that the Maoists are providing explosives to IM in return of arms and ammunition," an intelligence official said.

The IM link to the Maoists comes from the fact that the live bombs seized in Jharkhand are similar to the ones used in the serial blasts in Modi's Patna rally and Bodh Gaya earlier, adding to the suspicion that IM is getting active in the Red territory.

The group is suspected of having carried out both attacks. With the Maoists planning deadly attacks during polling in Chhattisgarh on November 11, this nexus could prove deadly.

It is feared that like the explosives seized in Jharkhand from the IM operatives, there could be other such attempts to bring in bombs to the state.

"With (election-related) security beefed up, the Maoists could be using other sources in neighbouring states like Jharkhand to stock ammunition and explosives that could be used in attacks to disturb peace in the poll-bound state," a source said.

IED found

The fear came true on Saturday when a joint team of paramilitary forces and district police seized an IED in the Maoist-hit Dantewada district.

There are more than 70,000 personnel on election duty, which is nearly three times the usual deployment in the state.

Intelligence inputs indicate that the Maoists who have been put under pressure with the heavy security deployment in their strongholds are trying to mobilise their cadres and seeking help of other sympathisers in adjoining states.

On November 4, nine live bombs were seized in Ranchi from an alleged IM hideout and this was followed by 22 IEDs being seized from a Maoist camp in the state.

Sources say initially Jharkhand was only a recruiting centre for the IM, but of late the group has got more active in the state and it's possible that they are working closely with the Red rebels.

While the Darbhanga module of Bihar was a strong IM unit, with Jharkhand with emerging as a new hub for IM recruits the proximity between the rebels and the terror group could be growing, intelligence agencies believe.

The IM-Maoist nexus has been on the radar of intelligence agencies for some time now. Sources say IM operations head Yasin Bhatkal who is in police custody now met some Maoist leaders in Nepal before his arrest.

Investigations reveal that Bhatkal met Maoist leaders in Harsahi, a small town in southern Nepal adjoining the Bihar border.



Bombs found in poll-bound Chhattisgarh



November 7: 50 kg of explosives found and defused in Chintalnar in interior Bastar ahead of the BJP's PM candidate Narendra Modi and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi's rallies.



Violent: Red ultras have reportedly laid mines on small dirt tracks in the Bastar division

November 9: An improvised explosive device (IED) recovered from Maoist-hit Dantewada district of south Chhattisgarh.

