Kolkata Police arrested senior CPI (Maoist) leader Ashim Mondal, alias Aakash, in Bhangar on Thursday, according to police commissioner Ajay Nand. Mondal, a central committee member of the banned organisation, was wanted in more than a dozen criminal cases in Bengal and other states, including cases related to killings and rioting.
Police said the arrest followed information about Mondal’s movement in the Polerhat area of Bhangar. Sources cited in the report said a Special Task Force team picked him up while he was travelling in a rickshaw. Pen drives, documents, letters and ₹95,000 in cash were seized from him, police said.
The arrest brings a long-running inter-state law-enforcement operation into focus. Mondal was believed to have been close to slain Maoist leader Kisenji and had allegedly evaded law enforcement for more than 15 years across forest areas. Jharkhand had announced a reward of ₹1 crore for information leading to his arrest.
Nand said a large group of Maoists had left Bengal in 2012 and moved to Jharkhand’s Saranda forest. “He did not make any movement on this side but was active in Jharkhand and was involved in multiple crimes,” the commissioner said. Police in Jharkhand have arrested some members of Mondal’s squad, according to the report.
The arrest follows other recent actions involving Maoist suspects in Bengal. Police said three Maoists were arrested in the state around 20 days ago. Some members of Mondal’s squad, including a person identified as Pushpa, had also recently surrendered before Kolkata Police.
Chief minister Suvendu Adhikari congratulated the Kolkata Police STF in a post on X. He said Mondal had been tracked through technical intelligence and described the operation as evidence of the force’s operational capability. The chief minister also said the state government would not allow attempts to revive or expand Maoist networks in West Bengal.
The case also raises questions about the distinction between arrest and rehabilitation under the state’s Maoist policy. Asked whether Mondal would be rehabilitated, Nand said rehabilitation packages applied only to people willing to surrender and undergo rehabilitation. The police commissioner’s response indicates that Mondal’s case is being handled through the criminal justice process rather than the surrender-based rehabilitation route.
Mondal is scheduled to be produced in court on Friday. The court proceedings are expected to determine the next stage of custody and investigation in the cases cited by the police.
