Naxal sympathiser held while trying to exchange old notes

Raipur: A Maoist sympathiser, allegedly trying to exchange banned Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes with the new ones worth Rs 49,000, was arrested in Chhattisgarh's Kondagaon district, Police said on Monday.

Based on specific input, the Naxal supporter identified as Paddam (46) was nabbed from Tekapal village under Mardapal police station area last night, Kondagaon Superintendent of Police Santosh Singh told PTI.

While a Police team was carrying out combing operation in Mardapal and Bayanar area, around 300 kms away from here, they received information about a suspect trying to exchange demonetised currency worth Rs 49,000 in the interior Tekapal, he said.

Subsequently, security forces apprehended him and seized the cash, he added.

A native of Kudur village in Mardapal region, Paddam was wanted in seven Maoist-related incidents in the area, including abduction and murder of a villager in 2014 and attack on a police party early this year, he said.

During interrogation, he revealed that a local Maoist commander-Nirmala had given him the cash looted from the villagers and after demonetisation he was looking to dispose it off with the support of his local resources, the SP said.

Notably, police had recovered unaccounted cash of Rs 44.25 lakh, in the denomination of old Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes, and jewellery worth Rs 2 lakh from the possession of a man in the Naxal-affected Kondagaon district on November 11.

A local was unable to produce valid documents to explain the cash and jewellery he possessed and he was being interrogated to ascertain source of the money.