Suspected Maoists arrested in Mavelikkara

TNN | Dec 30, 2012, 05.46 AM IST

KOZHIKODE: Five persons were on Saturday arrested from a lodge in Mavelikkara for their alleged Maoist links.Police identified the arrested as Gopal from Tamil Nadu, Bahuleyan and Shiyaz from Thiruvananthapuram, Devarajan from Kollam and Rajesh Madhavan from Mavelikkara.

Gopal is an activist of the Committee for the Protection of Civil Liberties, a human rights organization in Tamil Nadu.

Police had initially picked up seven persons, but released two minors, identified as the daughters of Roopesh, the former state secretary of CPI (Maoist).

The arrests were made under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act and for unlawful assembly, conspiracy and kidnapping, police said. A laptop and five mobile phones were seized from the arrested persons.

Roopesh and his wife Shyna have been in the list of wanted Maoists, after they were accused of harbouring Malla Raji Reddy, the politburo member of the CPI (Maoist), arrested by the Andhra Pradesh police from Angamali in December 2007.

Police had issued a lookout circular against Roopesh following suspicion that he had played a role to sabotage a train in Nilambur in 2010.

Meanwhile, Adv P A Pouran, general secretary of the Peoples Union for Civil Liberties, said the arrested were discussing issues related to the education sector. “Police have denied even the basic right to assemble and discuss issues,” he said.