NIA arrests TMC leader Mahato in connection with 2009 murder of CPM leader

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Sunday arrested All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Chhatradhar Mahato in connection with the murder of Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM) leader Prabir Mahato.

The arrest comes a day after the polling for the first phase of the West Bengal Assembly Elections 2021.

Prabir Mahato was murdered in 2009.

Chhatradhar Mahato was later produced before the Bankshall Court in Kolkata. He has previously served a 10-year sentence in connection with an abortive bid on the life of then West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee in 2008 and is involved in several other cases of bombing and landmine blasts. Mahato is known for his pro-Maoist sympathies.

Meanwhile, elections to the 294-member West Bengal state Assembly are being held in eight phases, starting from March 27 with the final round of voting taking place on April 29. The first phase of the polls registered a voter turnout of 79.79 per cent. The counting of votes will take place on May 2.

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