NIA raids premises of suspected Maoists

Searches are ongoing in Krishnagiri, Salem, Coimbatore, Theni and Sivaganga, besides Kerala and Karnataka.

The NIA believes that the Reds are currently engaged in recruiting fresh blood and strengthening the tri-junction forest base located in merging areas of Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. During the raid, devices, including mobile phones, SIM cards, pen drives, documents, manifesto, pamphlets and other incriminating material were recovered.

There are efforts to strengthen the armed struggle of Naxalites functioning in various dalams under the Western Ghats Special Zonal Committee.

At least eight Maoists from Tamil Nadu were named in the case registered last week by the Kochi NIA—Kalidas, a native of Ramanathapuram, Danish alias Krishna of Coimbatore, Velmurugan of Theni, Santhosh Kumar of Coimbatore, Manivasakam, Kuppuraj, Ajitha and Karthik.

The training camp in 2016, held in the Nilambur forest of Malappuram, was organised as part of a larger conspiracy to attack security agencies of the government with firearms and wage war against the country, claimed the FIR.