Kolkata, Sep 17 (IANS): West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Thursday congratulated the Special Task Force (STF) of Kolkata Police for arresting wanted Maoist leader Asim Mandal alias Akash alias Timir alias Manoj from Patashpur in East Midnapore district earlier in the day.
In a statement posted on social media, the Chief Minister commended STF personnel for successfully tracking and apprehending Mandal, who served as a Central Committee member and Secretary of the West Bengal State Committee-I of the CPI (Maoist).
He described the operation as a major success, noting that the Maoist leader had allegedly managed to evade law enforcement agencies for more than 15 years across the forested regions of West Bengal, Jharkhand and Odisha.
“I commend the Officers and Personnel of the @KolkataPolice STF in successfully tracking and apprehending Asim Mandal @ Akash, Central Committee Member and Secretary of the West Bengal State Committee-I, CPI (Maoist), from Lalat, Patashpur, Purba Medinipur,” the Chief Minister said.
“I want to make it categorically clear that the West Bengal Government will not tolerate any attempt to revive or expand the network of ‘Red Terror’ within our state borders. No extremist ideology will be allowed to jeopardize the safety & security of the People and jeopardize the development of our State. The law will take its strictest course to demolish any such audacious attempt,” the Chief Minister further said.
According to police sources, two bags containing Maoist literature, including books and booklets, as well as electronic communication devices, were recovered from Asim Mandal’s possession following his arrest.
Investigators said Akash’s wife, a resident of the Patashpur area and an alleged CPI (Maoist) activist, was arrested by the Kolkata Police STF in 2010 and is currently in judicial custody.
Police officials view the arrest as a significant breakthrough in efforts to dismantle the remnants of the Left-Wing Extremist network operating across the tribal and forested belts of West Bengal, Jharkhand and Odisha.
An award of Rs 2.20 crore had earlier been announced for information leading to Asim Mandal’s capture.
A native of Fulchak village under Chandrakona Police Station in West Midnapore district, Mandal is said to have become involved in Left-Wing extremist activities during his student years in the 1980s. He later joined the People’s War Group and worked extensively in the Sarenga and Goaltor regions of West Bengal as well as the Gurabanda area of Jharkhand’s East Singhbhum district.
Security agencies’ records show that nearly 55 serious criminal cases are registered against him across Jharkhand, Odisha and West Bengal. Several of these cases relate to attacks on security forces and armed encounters in Jharkhand.
Mamdal played a key role in the Lalgarh movement in West Bengal’s Jangalmahal region and was appointed Secretary of the party’s West Bengal State Committee in 2010. He also held responsibilities in the Bengal-Jharkhand-Odisha Regional Committee. Following the 2011 encounter killing of senior Maoist leader Kishanji, he largely remained underground, police sources said.
