Kolkata: Senior Maoist leader Sraddha Biswas alias Bela of Jharkhand was arrested in Kolkata, police said on Tuesday.
Kolkata Police arrested her from the Cossipore area in north Kolkata.
Bela, a resident of Chakdaha in Nadia district, is a member of the Maoist regional committee in Jharkhand.
She was active in Jharkhand for a long time.
Besides, a Maoist named Madhai Patra, a resident of Hooghly district, has also surrendered to the police.
He was also active in Jharkhand. On Tuesday afternoon, a press conference was held at Alipore Bodyguard Lines.
Kolkata Police Commissioner Ajay Nand said that more information could be obtained by interrogating the arrested Maoist leader.
Jharkhand Police will also come to Kolkata to interrogate Bela. He said the senior Maoist leader’s physical condition was also not very good.
Bela has been active in Jharkhand since 2005. There are more than 20 cases against her in that state. A reward of Rs 15 lakh had been declared for her in Jharkhand.
She was mainly active in the Ghatshila, East Singhbhum, and West Singhbhum areas.
The Police Commissioner said that in 2004-05, Bela’s name was linked to a case in Belpahari, West Midnapore district, West Bengal.
She was also arrested in that case. But after getting bail, she did not return to the state.
According to the police, Bela later came to Kolkata for some reason.
After receiving information from a secret source, the police arrested her. It is still not clear why she came to Kolkata. The police also did not comment on this.
The Police Commissioner said that information would be collected through questioning about how long ago she arrived in Kolkata.
Along with this, Madhai Patra, a resident of Jangipara in Hooghly district, also surrendered to the police on Tuesday.
He was also involved in Maoist activities for a long time. Madhai was first arrested in 2007. After getting bail, he went to Jharkhand and remained active there.
The Police Commissioner said: “After many days of Maoist activities, he (Madhai) now wants to surrender and lead a normal life. He wants to return to the mainstream. He will be helped as per the surrender and rehabilitation scheme that we have.”
Surrendered Maoist Madhai was also present at the press conference.
He said: “When I first joined the party, the party’s norms were all good. But later, the party’s norms changed. Society has changed. Considering all that, I have thought of returning to the mainstream of society.”
Madhai also called on those who are still involved in the Maoist organisation to surrender and return to mainstream society.
(IANS)
