THE Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) on Sunday arrested a 44-year-old man in Raigad district for his alleged links with Naxalites, police said. Prashant Jalinder Kamble, alias Laptop, was wanted since 2011 in connection with an “Urban Naxal” case, an official said. Milind Teltumbde, a senior leader of the outlawed CPI (Maoist) who was killed in an encounter with security forces in Maharashtra’s Gadchiroli district two years ago, and top “Maoist” Angela Sontakke were also named in the 2011 FIR. According to ATS officials, Kamble had been hiding in the Khopoli area of Raigad district, where he used to teach tribal children, for the past six to seven years, he said. Kamble, a resident of the Tadiwala Road area in Pune, used to repair computers and laptops.

 

He came in contact with the Kabir Kala Manch, a cultural group that has faced allegations of links to Naxalism, said the official. The official said Kamble left home in 2010, but never returned. He and one Santosh Shelar, also missing from Pune, subsequently became active members of the CPI (Maoist) in the jungles of Gadchiroli. In January 2024, Santosh Shelar returned to his home in Pune in a sick condition, where he was arrested by the ATS. Officials said Kamble is a “highvalue” target and called him a hardcore follower of Naxalite ideology. After the 2011 case, Kamble was declared absconding by the court, and a non-bailable warrant and proclamation were issued against him, he said.