Mother appeals to Maoists

KOLKATA: Thirteen days after her son was allegedly abducted by Maoists from Lalgarh's Brindabanchak, Jahanara Begum, mother of Shabbir Mollah (30), a constable of the state armed police, made an appeal to the Red rebels to release her son.
Shabbir, the youngest of four brothers, is the sole earning member of the family. The police so far have no clue whether he is alive or has been killed.
On July 31, more than a month after the combined state and central forces started their operation against the Maoists, Shabbir and Kanchan Giri, another constable, were kidnapped while on duty at Brindabanchak. They have neither been seen nor heard of since then. Shabbir hails from Burdwan's Pelsara village while Giri is from a village in Bankura.
"I appeal to them to release my son. We are poor people and he is merely an employee of the state government," Jahanara said.
Shabbir joined the state armed police in February 2007. After completing his training at the Barrackpore police training school, he was posted at Singur during the agitation against the now-abandoned Tata Motors plant. After Aila struck, Shabbir was sent to Sunderbans.
"On July 30, we were suddenly informed that Shabbir would have to go to Lalgarh. We were scared, but did not imagine such an outcome," said Sabyasachi Mollah, Shabbir's cousin. He reached Lalgarh on July 30 and the very next day, he was abducted. "I saw the news on television. Immediately I sent my sons to the police station," Jahanara Begum said.
Maoist leader Bikash has denied that the banned Red ultras had any role in the abduction. Police, however, are certain that either the Maoists or the Maoist-backed People's Committee Against Police Atrocities (PCPA) is behind the abduction. "We have carried out raids at nearby forests and won't spare any effort to trace the two," said Manoj Verma, SP, West Midnapore.