Jailbreak by 105 Naxals

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Bhopal/Raipur, Dec. 16: In what may well be among the biggest jailbreaks in the country, and certainly the first in the Maoist-infested Bastar region of Chhattisgarh, at least 303 prisoners, many of them Naxalites, escaped from the Dantewada district jail on Sunday afternoon and melted away into the surrounding jungles. Two people, a prisoner and a prison guard, were killed in a shootout. Five others were injured.

Jail sources told PTI over the telephone that at least 105 Naxalites were among the escapees. Many of the others are believed to have been in custody for Naxalite-related offences.

The shocking incident occurred between 4.30 pm to 5 pm when tea was being served to the prisoners. Though there was confusion on the exact number of Maoists who made good their escape, the general view was that the overwhelming number of convicts there were behind bars for Naxalite-related offences. There were 377 convicts in the jail when the breakout occurred.

The escape appeared to have been triggered by a Naxalite commander named Sujit, who overpowered a guard, snatched his rifle and flung open the doors of other cells, leading to a mass exodus. A few weapons were looted by the fleeing prisoners.

The Dantewada district jail is situated 8-9 km away from the town, and is at a secluded spot. There were just four guards on duty (instead of the usual 16) when the drama unfolded. "Everything happened in a flash," police sources said. A guard walked into Sujit’s cell to serve tea and snacks at the usual hour. Giving him a violent shove, Sujit wrenched away his weapon along with a bunch of keys in his pocket, and dashed out of the cell. Another guard who came rushing to see what the hollering was all about was gunned down on the spot. The Naxalite fired a few shots to scare away the other guards, then went about unlocking the doors of the other cells with the help of some others.

Since the jail is surrounded by jungles on either side, locals feel that most of the escapees must have either headed for the River Irrawadi 25 km away, or fled to Bailadila, where the Maoists have a strong presence. A week ago there was a bomb blast behind Jagdalpur jail, the reasons for which are yet to be probed by the police.

The state’s principal home secretary, Mr N.K. Aswal, said five jail officials including the jailer had been suspended in connection with the incident. The Naxals snatched one INSAS weapon, two .303 rifles and three muskets of the guards and one wireless set before they fled, state home minister Ram Vichar Netam told PTI.

Mr Rahul Sharma, superintendent of police, Dantewada, said the jailbreak was a "premeditated conspiracy" hatched by the undertrials, mostly Naxalite supporters.

Mr Netam acknowledged that there was a lapse in security

in and around Dantewada jail. The police made some preliminary search operations in the jungles near the prison but called it off as night fell. A major search will be launched on Monday, the police said.

Neighbouring states like Maharashtra, Orissa and Andhra

Pradesh have been alerted, along with other districts of the state, officials added.

The director-general of prisons, Mr Sant Kumar Paswan, has also been asked to rush to the spot to take stock of the situation, Mr Netam said.

Official sources said the district collector and the superintendent of police have been asked separately by the state government to submit reports on the incident, after which action will be taken against officials responsible for the security lapse.