Chhattisgarh: Five held for extorting from tendu leaf contractors to finance Naxalites

Mohla, Aug 10 (PTI) Five persons were arrested on Saturday from Bijapur and Mohla-Manpur-Ambagarh Chowki districts in Chhattisgarh for allegedly extorting money to finance Naxal activities, a police official said.

Sonaram Farsa, Vijay Jurri, Ramlal Karma, Rajendra Kadti, all from Bijapur, and Vivek Singh, from Mohla-Manpur-Ambagarh Chowki, are accused of extorting several lakh rupees by imposing tendu leaf levy on contractors in Bijapur, he said.

"They have been taken into custody," Inspector General of Police Rajnandgaon (Range) Deepak Jha said.

The probe following the arrest of tribal leader and alleged Maoist aide Sarju Ram Tekam in April this year found he was continuously visiting urban areas to spread the outlawed ideology.

Tekam had sought money on March 22 from Farsa for flight tickets to New Delhi to attend a protest backed by the Communist Party of India (Maoist) against Operation Kagar, corporatization, militarization held in New Delhi on March 23, the official said.

"The flight tickets to New Delhi for Tekam and Farsa were booked from the money collected by way of illegal levy. Tekam had shared his bank account details and then Farsa had sent him money for the flight tickets and other expenses. Tekam had assigned Singh to book flight tickets for him and Farsa," the official said.

The accused extorted Rs 60 lakh from contractors engaged in tendu leaf collections in Bhairamgarh area of Bijapur district in 2022 and they were also tasked with supplying rations, medicines and other essential materials for use by the ultras, he said.

"The four used to transfer money online for travel and other expenses of the urban network of the outlawed Maoist organization. The financial trail, electronic and other documents are being analysed as part of the probe," he added. PTI COR BNM