JOIN USTMC leader Chhatradhar Mahato questioned by NIA in two cases
TMC leader and former convenor of the Maoist-backed PCAPA, Chhatradhar Mahato was Friday questioned by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in two 11-year-old cases of train hijack and murder of a CPI(M) leader, sources said.
Mahato, who was inducted in the TMC state committee in July and given leadership roles in the Jangal Mahal region, was questioned by a team of NIA officers at Salboni CRPF camp.
"I have come to Salboni from Jhargram to meet the NIA officers, who had summoned me for questioning in two 11-year- old cases. I will cooperate with them. Earlier they had summoned me for questioning in Kolkata but I couldn't attend them due to the Covid-19 situation," he said before entering the CRPF camp.
"The BJP is using NIA to intimidate me by using false cases that occured more than a decade ago. I will keep opposing their communal politics," the 57-year-old TMC leader said.
Mahato was a prominent leader of the Lalgarh movement that was spearheaded by People's Committee Against Police Atrocities (PCAPA) and backed by Maoists in the late 2000s. He is one of the accused in the killing of a CPI(M) leader in Jungle Mahal area.
He has also been named in the October 2009 hijacking of New Delhi-bound Bhubaneshwar-Rajdhani Express for five hours at Jhargram station demanding his release.
Mahato was arrested on September 26, 2009, by police from present-day Jhargram district for an attempt on the life of former chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee in Kantapahari area of West Midnapore district on November 2, 2008.
He was set free in February this year following a reduction of his life term to 10 years by Calcutta High Court for his good conduct. He has been named in several cases related to alleged Maoist activities with charges levelled under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act or UAPA.