10 suspected Naxals held in Pune

ATS chief Rakesh Maria identified the men as an “independent group” affiliated to the Sidhu Kanu Dalam,with some of the men such as Rabi Hansda (19) also allegedly acting as couriers for groups such as the People’s Guerilla Libertaion Army (PGLA). “The information that we have received also indicates that this is a group of the growing gun militia and they pose a serious concern,” said Maria. “They have all been arrested under sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act along with sections of the Arms Act. The interrogation has so far revealed that Sushanto Mahato (36),who is involved in a June 30 explosion in West Bengal,had fled to Pune and made it is his working base.”

“Sushanto worked in the despatch section of a factory for some time before he started finding vacancies in the construction labour departments in projects in MIDC region in Shiroor in Pune for the remaining nine. Most of the arrested have been able to find a base since they found shelter and also forged identities in the floating labour population,” Maria said.

Four of the arrested have allegedly been found to possess 7.65 mm cartridge pistols with seven rounds of ammunition. Around 300 pages of literature citing “armed revolution” has been seized from the group from the tin houses inside MIDC where they have been staying for the last three months. Most of the men arrested were found to be employed in labour jobs with daily wages. The ten have been remanded in custody till May 23. The West Bengal Police have been informed and they are on their way to seek custody.

With the second bunch of alleged Naxalites also coming from the region,Maria said “the matter is of grave concern” and called for a study. Explaining the probe,he said this “requires a different approach and investigation is being done in isolation and a quiet manner” as there are a lot of youths and students who have fallen prey to extreme ideologies.

“The level of penetration of the ideologue to the western corridor is showing a strong influx among the floating population,industrial base and the vibrant student community. This perception that they are restricted to the borders of Gadchiroli is shattered and soon changing. Soon after the arrest of the group led by Angela Sontakke,we have had special teams from Gadchiroli,Gondhia,the state Anti-Naxal Operation Groups and special experts from varied sociological and science fields come to study this phenomenon. Their scale of penetration in the western corridor and the pace of their reach inroads is shocking,” Maria said.

“The groups have shown that students especially are being first recruited as couriers to transfer either money or any written literature. This is specifically done to check the level of commitment. The indoctrination and training in the armed rebellion begins only after they prove successful in the first step. The interrogation of an 18-year-old girl from Angela Sontakke’s group has proved this theory. Case studies will now be made from such arrests.”

Suspects remanded in ATS custody

*The 10 men were produced before Judicial Magistrate (first class) B D Deshmukh at the Shivajinagar court. The ATS requested the court to conduct an in-camera proceeding claiming that the suspects were arrested for a serious offence and it was essential to maintain secrecy. The court accepted the ATS plea and remanded the suspects in police custody until May 23. ACP (ATS) Vinod Satav said more arrests were likely

*The ATS had also arrested six people from Pune in the last week of April for allegedly having links with Naxals. They included Angelo Sontakke,wife of Naxal leader Milind Teltumbde. Among the other five,Siddharth Bhosale,a resident of Kondhwa and MA (Economics) student at Fergusson College,was arrested from Nashik. Also,Sushma Ramteke alias Shraddha Gurav was arrested from Pirangut in Pune,and Mayuri Bhagat (23) alias Jenny,Jyothi Chorghe (19),Anuradhadha Sonule (23) were arrested from the Shivajinagar area of Pune.

*Investigations revealed that the six were part of the Golden Corridor Group of the communist Party of India (Maoist),which was formed to organise students and labourers in the industrial centres of Gujrat and Maharashtra and in cities like Pune,Mumbai,Thanea and Nashik. Angelo Sontakke was the secretary of the Golden Corridor Group and the head of the West Maharashtra Area Committee of the Naxals. Investigations also revealed that they were helping the Naxalites from different parts of the country take shelter in Pune.