Jamshedpur, Oct 15: Suspecting the hand of People's War in the October 11 landmine blast in Purulia district of West Bengal, police here has detained eight youths who were moving in a suspicious manner in a naxalites-dominated forest on Bengal-Jharkhand border. DSP, (Ghatsila Range), S K Sinha, told reporters today that East Singhbhum district police, along with the CRPF, launched a massive hunt after a tip-off by villagers that eight youths, all Bengali speaking and in the age group of 25-30 years, had taken shelter in a school in remote Punsa village in East Singhbhum district for the last two days.
The police finally traced the group near Dwarsini forest on the Bengal-Jharkhand border yesterday, Sinha said. The youths have been detained for interrogation.
He said they had all denied complicity in the landmine blast at Bandwan in Purulia district in which a police officer was killed, saying they had come here for trekking.
The claims were being verified from concerned authorities in West Bengal, Sinha said.
Bureau Report