Abducted intelligence officer still untraceable in Bengal
By IANSWednesday, October 27, 2010
KOLKATA - Police are still unable to trace the Intelligence Bureau (IB) officer and the non-governmental organisation (NGO) activist believed to have been abducted by Maoists from West Bengal’s Purulia district Oct 23.
Whereabouts of IB officer Partho Biswas and his friend and school teacher Soumyajit Bose remain unknown even after four days of combing operations in the Ayodhya Hills of Purulia, police said.
The security personnel are conducting search operations in the entire area in close coordination with joint security forces on the Jharkhand border. We are yet to find any probable hideout of the Maoists. The Maoists have not communicated with us, the state inspector general of police (Western Range) Zulfikar Hassan said Wednesday.
Police said the family members of the kidnapped persons received a call from the Maoists, informing them that the two were safe.
He also said the decision to slow down the search operation was taken after the family members of the abducted duo Monday met Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee.
The family members pleaded that the government should desist from taking any hasty steps as they are expecting further communication from the Maoists,” the officer said.
He said a meeting was held between the senior officers Wednesday to chalk out the operational strategies.
We are considering giving safe passage to the Maoists if they release the two,” the officer added.
