Chhatradhar Mahato remanded to police custody

LALGARH - Arrested tribal leader Chhatradhar Mahato, was remanded to five day’s police custody on Sunday.

Mahato has been remanded to five day’s police custody after being produced at the Jhargram Magistrate’s Court.

“Arms and ammunition were recovered from the home of Chhatradhar Mahato. He has been booked for anti-national activities. He has been remanded to five days police custody,” said Suman Mahapatra, public prosecutor.

Meanwhile, cultural activists, artists and intellectuals took to the streets in Kolkata demanding immediate release of Mahato.

The protestors urged the state government to release him.

“In our opinion government has arrested Chhatradhar Mahato yesterday in an unethical manner, because the CID officers, police officers, in disguise of journalist arrested Chhatradhar Mahato. This is unethical. So, we are protesting against that and we demand unconditional release of him” Dilip Chakravorty, a cultural activist, said.

Mahato, leader of People’s Committee Against Police Atrocities (PCAPA), which has been spearheading agitation against alleged police atrocities, was nabbed from Pirka region, near Lalgarh village.

Police nabbed Mahato when he was about to give an interview to a journalist who was being followed.

Mahato had been giving regular interviews when the paramilitary forces and the state police had launched the anti-Maoist operations in Lalgarh, a place declared as a liberated zone by the Maoists, on June 19 forcing him to go underground for some time.

The tribals under Mahato had a free run for nine months with the police withdrawing from the camps, before the paramilitary troops recaptured Lalgarh from the Maoists who were fuelling the tribal agitations. (ANI)