Even as the security forces seemed poised for a final offensive against Maoists, the state government on Tuesday banned all outsiders from entering Lalgarh and surrounding areas, detaining a group of intellectuals briefly as they tried to enter the battle zone.

The group led by Jaidip Mukherjee, head of Legal Aid Services, an NGO, was detained near Salboni as it was on its way to Lalgarh, which remained tense but peaceful on Tuesday with hardly any gunshots being fired either by security forces or the Maoists.

IG (law and order) Raj Kanojia, however, said the operation was still underway, claiming that tangible results could be expected beginning Wednesday. “No outsiders will be allowed to enter Lalgarh and surrounding areas. Already, Section 144 has been imposed in the area and 20 companies of paramilitary forces are present there,” Kanojia said.

Stopped short of destination Lalgarh, intellectuals reacted sharply to the state’s move. “This is a sham of democracy. Why can’t we go in? I have heard that when Aparna Sen and Saonli Mitra entered Lalgarh recently, police slapped cases against them for violating Section 144,” an enraged Mukherjee said.

Though guns were silent on Tuesday, senior officers from the state police and the paramilitary forces were busy holding meetings at the reclaimed Lalgarh police station, which has been turned into a base camp for security forces.

A senior officer supervising the operations said the CoBRA forces and CRPF personnel were sanitising the areas in Maoist dens to move deeper.

Meanwhile, to restrict the entry of outsiders, police have set up at least four check posts between Bhadutala and Lalgarh Road. “Apprehending that the Maoists might enter the areas boarding vehicles and disguised as media persons or traders, a thorough check was initiated by the administration,” said Samar Mitra, a senior officer of DIB (Burdwan) who is supervising the operation at Pirakata.

... contd.