The Kolkata Police had booked Chakraborty under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act after arresting him from Park Street while he was emerging from the office of a private television channel.

Public prosecutor S Pathak had moved the plea that Chakraborty’s police remand be extended for another two weeks, saying under the UAPA, the police can take an accused in its remand for a month.

Pathak told the court that Chakraborty was an active member of the organisation and that the police had recovered important material from his residence at Madanpur in Nadia district, which established his involvement with the Maoists.

Chakraborty’s counsel Tapas Maity opposed the prosecution’s plea saying his client suffered from high blood pressure and is 72 years old now. Maity assured the court that Chakraborty would cooperate with the police in the investigation and so could be released on bail in view of his health and age.

Maity also said his client was merely a hired spokesperson of the CPI (Maoist) and had told a private television channel that he would leave the outfit if it was banned by the state government.

The magistrate, S S Anand, however, rejected his plea. The court also turned down Maity’s request that Chakraborty’s wife be allowed to meet his client for a few minutes in police custody.

Meanwhile, Bankura police have not moved any petition seeking the withdrawal of the UAPA against the two suspected Maoists, Gopinath Murmu and Kanchan Murmu. Both were arrested on June 28 from Kargilmore while allegedly trying to plant a landmine. The duo’s counsel, Samir Das, said the Bankura police had not filed any petition for the withdrawal of UAPA so far.