Click to play videoNew Delhi: The suspected Maoist mastermind behind the Sildah massacre in which 24 personnel of the Eastern Frontier Rifles were killed, was produced in a Kolkata court on Wednesday.
The Maoist leader Venkateshwar Reddy alias Telugu Deepak, who was arrested in Kolkata on Tuesday, has been sent to 14 days police custody.
Telugu Deepak is a significant catch for the West Bengal police. He is not just a close associate of Maoist military wing chief Koteswar rao alias Kishenji, but he is also a key member of the CPI-Maoist central military commission.
A mechanical engineering diploma holder from Nagarjuna University, Telugui Deepak was responsible for training armed Maoist cadres in West Bengal, Jharkhand and Orissa.
He is an explosives expert who trained tribal youth in Nandigram and Lalgarh's in guerrilla warfare.
He was also an important organiser who recruited cadres from West Bengal's industrial work force.
"He has been focusing on West Bengal for the last 15 years and involved in killings including many policemen since 2000," claimed West Bengal CID ADG Raj Kanaujia.
Deepak's arrest adds to list of key Maoist leaders who have been put behind bars since 2008 when politburo member Pramod Mishra was arrested in Jharkhand followed by Amit Bagchi in August 2009.
Another politburo member Kobad gandhy was arrested in September 2009 from Delhi and yet another Bajraj was nabbed in Kanpur in February 2010.
CPI-Maoist central committee members Ashutosh and Amar were also arrested in 2009.
Central intelligence sources have told CNN-IBN that several Maoist leaders have been using Kolkata and other cities in West Bengal as their hideout, indicating that more such arrests are likely in the next few weeks.
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