The Kataram police have busted a “Maoists’ supply chain” with the arrest of four persons, including a beedi (tendu) leaf contractor and seized ₹76.57 lakh cash, medicines and explosive materials allegedly meant for Maoists from their possession.
The police intercepted a car over suspicion at the forest check-post near Kataram on Wednesday evening and found a huge amount of cash, medicines, a Samsung Galaxy S8 ultra 5G Tab, three Casio watches, three each gelatin sticks and detonators, cordex wire and four mobile phones in the vehicle.
Upon questioning, the four occupants of the car “confessed” to carrying the cash, medicines, and other materials to hand over them to Maoists based in Chhattisgarh, police said.
The arrested accused were identified as Abdul Aziz, 63, beedi leaf contractor, and Abdul Razzaq, 60, both natives of Karimnagar, Raghav, 26, of Chandur in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district and Kausar Ali, 27, the car driver hailing from West Bengal.
Aziz has been associated with beedi (tendu) leaf trade in Bhupalpatnam area of neighbouring Chhattisgarh for over a decade, according to Kataram police.
He has been supplying provisions to four Chhattisgarh-based Maoists through a worker of a beedi leaf unit since 2014, police said, adding that he had provided ₹ 13 lakh to the four Maoists last year.
Addressing the media in Bhupalpally on Thursday, Superintendent of Police J Surender Reddy said efforts were on to nab eight more accused involved in the case.
