Kolkata, Oct 13: Police today claimed to have gathered clues to the blowing up of an entire police patrol party in a landmine blast by naxalites at the Katajora forest along the West Bengal-Jharkhand border on Saturday even as seven suspected MCC and PW workers were arrested during the past 24 hours. The officer in-charge of Bardwan police station was killed and 12 constables were injured in the powerful landmine blast during a routine patrol in the forest area, 72 km off Purulia on October 11. State's DIG (HQ) of Police N C Ghosh told reporters that police had got definite clues to the naxalite plan to blow up the police patrol party by carrying out the landmine blast. Seven persons, suspected to have direct links with outfits like the Maoist Communist Centre and People's War were arrested from the area around Katajora forest during intensive police raid last night, Ghosh said. Besides, nine persons were detained for interrogation in connection with the blast.
Ghosh said that the state police had sought help of its Andhra Pradesh counterpart on the increased activities of both the MCC and PW in the state in recent times.
Bureau Report