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The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Sunday arrested former Maoist-turned-Trinamool Congress leader, Chhatradhar Mahato.
The arrest was made in connection with a 2009 murder of then CPI(M) leader, Prabir Mahato. Chhatradhar was then heading a frontal Maoist organisation active in the Junglemahal region of the state.
He is likely to be produced before a city court, later in the day.
The arrest comes a day after voting took place in parts of Junglemahal - the former Maoist hotbed covering the four districts of Paschim Midnapore, Jhargram, Purulia and parts of Bankura - on Saturday. Parts of Junglemahal are expected to go to polls later in April.
ex-Maoist turned Trinamool leader
Chhatradhar, once the face of the adivasi revolution and a Maoist uprising in West Bengal’s Paschim Midnapore district, has already been in jail for over 10 years. He was released and subsequently got inducted into the Trinamool in 2020 where he was asked to head the district unit of the party there. The Maoist uprising here fell through after the arrest of Chhatradhar (in 2009) and death of Kishenji (Koteswar Rao) in a police encounter, in 2011.
The Trinamool, through Chhatradhar, has been reportedly trying to consolidate the dominant ‘Kurmi’ votes - one out of three voters is a Kurmi - in Jhargram. Once a Kurmi activist, Chhatradhar has often been vocal on the need for reservations of this particular adivasi populace.
Chhatradhar had also contested a previous Assembly poll as an independent candidate.
The arrest
A team of 40 NIA officials landed up at residence in the wee hours of Sunday to arrest him.
The Calcutta High Court had recently ordered that Chhatradhar appear before the NIA thrice a week.
The NIA has accused Mahato under various sections of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, apart from waging war against the country.
The Trinamool Congress questioned the timing of the arrest; while BJP leader and party spokesperson, Shamik Bhattacharjee, said there was no political motive behind the arrest.
“Chhatradhar has several cases pending against him,” Bhattacharjee said.
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