Thunderbolt begins chase to nab Maoists

KOZHIKODE: The local police and a 15-member team of Thunderbolt have been conducting combing operations  at Parappanpara near Thamarassery  on a tip-off that a five-member team of Maoists are staying there.   The Maoist gang also includes a woman, Thamarassery DySP K. Ashraf told this newspaper. “The  gang  approached the family of Santhosh Uppumakkal on Tuesday and asked for food. They spent three to four hours at the house to charge their mobile phones. When they reached there, Soman's wife Bindu and her father-in-law were present. The family did not raise any complaint regarding the Maoists," said the DySP.

It could not be confirmed whether the leader of the Maoist gang was Mr Soman as they were verifying the photographs with the family members. "On the next day (Wednesday), the family was asked to bring food for them inside the forest and they obeyed it. The location is near  Mattikkunnumala.  The family says they were not threatened and they did not file any complaints with us," he added. This is for the first time that  Maoist presence is reported from Thamarassery area. Their presence in Wayanad was already confirmed. In the light of the Nilambur shooting, the police were  on high alert expecting retaliation from them.