Government's plan to break funding network of Maoists discussed

Top security and intelligences officials and heads of probe agencies met here on Tuesday to discuss the government's multi-pronged approach to break the network of Maoist funding for insurgency activities across the country.

The meeting came amid reports that the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and the Enforcement Directorate may be roped in to probe the terror funding sources of Maoists.

According to official sources, the meeting -- attended by NIA chief Y.C. Modi, ED Director Karnal Singh and Senior Security Advisor in the Home Ministry K. Vijay Kumar -- was held at the NIA headquarters here.

The meeting was also attended by several top officials of the Intelligence Bureau and Enforcement Directorate.

Police officers from Maoist-affected states of Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and West Bengal were also present.

An ED source told IANS that a similar meeting of these officials took place on February 12 where ways to curb financial funding of Maoists in these states on a pilot basis was discussed.

"As per the plan after the February meeting, the ED has recently attached properties worth crores of rupees of top Naxal (Maoist) leaders in Bihar," the source said.

In February, the ED attached movable and immovable properties worth Rs 86 lakh of top Maoist leader Sandeep Yadav, in-charge of Madhya Zone of Bihar Jharkhand Special Area Committee of CPI-Maoist.

On Monday, the ED attached properties worth Rs 68 lakh of Pradumn Sharma, in-Charge of Magadh zone of Special Area Committee of Bihar-Jharkhand and Pramod Sharma, Secretary of Banawar Sub-Area Zonal Committee of CPI-Maoist.

--IANS

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