Arms supplier to Maoists arrested

A suspected Maoist sympathiser, whom investigators claim is an arms supplier to the ultra Left group, has been arrested from Maharashtra's Gadchiroli, Delhi Police said on Sunday.

Ajeet Ray, who resides in Maoist-infested Gadchiroli, was apprehended by Delhi Police's Special Cell on Saturday following investigations into inputs provided by two people whom they had arrested in July this year. Ray carried a reward of Rs 2 lakh, declared by Delhi Police, on his head.

Investigators claimed that they seized 45 prohibited bore cartridges of INSAS and Self Loading Rifles used by country's security forces from the 48-year-old man, who is accused of committing crimes on behalf of Maoists since 1990. Police said Ray's parents were residents of Bangladesh, but shifted to Gharchiroli in 1971.

A bio-chemistry graduate, Ray is a civil contractor, who came in contact of Maoist groups, following which he started carrying out "anti-national activities" on the instructions of self-styled commanders of CPI (Maoist), police claimed.

His arrest came four months after Delhi Police made its first arrest — Ram Krishna Singh from Bihar — reportedly with 407 cartridges. He is claimed to have told police that he was into arms peddling since 2015, and used to procure illegal cartridges from Atal in Bihar and used to supply them to CPI (Maoist) through his contacts in Gharchiroli, including Ray. Further investigations led to the arrest of one Sanjay Singh.

The police got a tip off that ray would come to Bhamar Garh Road in Gadchiroli's Aheri, following this, they arrested him. He is wanted in five cases.

During investigations, it came to light that Ray was arrested by Odisha Police in 2008 along with other Maoists. He was arrested earlier in Odisha in 2005 in a fake currency case. Earlier, police claimed that Ray provided logistical support to Maoist leader Shankar Anna, and was detained.