Q branch nets naxal bigwig

MADURAI: Q branch police made a major breakthrough by arresting a Naxal state committee member Manivasakam near Thanjavur on Monday. He was later taken to Chennai and produced before a court, which remanded him.Manivasakam had been absconding since 2008. A non-bailable warrant issued by a TADA court then has been pending against him, a Q branch source  said.“Manivasakam is a member of a Naxal party’s state committee, who had links with its polit bureau. He also attended secret meetings with members of Naxal outfits in states like West Bengal, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh and Bihar,” said the source.When Q branch police swooped down on a group of Naxals in November 2002 in the dense mangroves of Utha­ngarai village in Dharmapuri district, the police also arres­ted Manivasakam, the source said. At the time, he told police he was a ‘courier boy’ (passing information among Naxal leaders). However, investigations by Q branch proved Manivasakam was an active state committee member of one of the parties.Though Manivasakam was jailed in 2002 after the Uthangarai operation, he was released on bail. Since 2008, he went into hiding, after which the TADA court issued the warrant against him.