Maoists hunt for train attack suspect,may have got him already

The Maoist leadership in the region is desperate for a damage-control exercise after the train carnage on May 28. Security agencies fear that Mahato may be killed to show that the attack did not have the sanction of the Maoists. His elimination will also wipe out vital clues in the case.

Intercepts of phone calls between Bapi Mahato and Sanjoy Mahato,one of his close associates,revealed that a Maoist squad has been hunting for him.

In a conversation accessed by the The Indian Express,Bapi was heard telling Sanjoy about the squad led by a woman. The squad is roaming near the Indraboni jungle area, Bapi was heard telling Sanjoy. I am still alive. I saw Madam the woman commander who is moving with her squad. Her face is covered by a black cloth. Sanjoy replied: Be careful. If they catch you,you will be killed.

A senior police officer said that they first received information about Bapi Mahatos abduction three days ago. But later,a senior PCAPA leader,whose name is withheld,claimed that he had given shelter to Bapi. However,the reports we received today suggest that Bapi was released from the shelter and might have been abducted, said the officer.

He said that the police have received multiple inputs to show that the Maoists are desperate to eliminate Bapi and spread the news. They are out to prove that they had no role in the Jnaneswari incident and it was executed by Bapi and his men without their sanction. The woman commander,we believe,is Annu,a very senior leader, added the officer.

When asked about the abduction,SP,West Midnapore,Manoj Verma,said: This may be a Maoist stratagem to wash their hands of the incident. But we have enough evidence to nail them.

Bapi Mahato had told The Indian Express that the goods train was his target and not Jnaneswari Express. He,however,retracted the statement after the West Bengal police named him as the prime suspect.