Purnea arms case: NIA conducts searches in Patna

The searches were conducted at the house of Chandra Vijay Pratap and the premises of M/s Sanmario Pharmaceuticals Private Limited in Patna of which Pratap is the Director, the NIA spokesperson said. The case pertains to the interdiction of an SUV and seizure of highly sophisticated weapons and ammunition on February 7 last year by police in Purnea, Bihar, from three persons -- Suraj Prasad, Varengnow Kahorngam and Clearson Kabo, the official said.

The NIA on Tuesday conducted searches in Patna at the house of an accused in the case of supplying arms and ammunition including grenade launchers to Naxals, an official said. The searches were conducted at the house of Chandra Vijay Pratap and the premises of M/s Sanmario Pharmaceuticals Private Limited in Patna of which Pratap is the Director, the NIA spokesperson said.

The case pertains to the interdiction of an SUV and seizure of highly sophisticated weapons and ammunition on February 7 last year by police in Purnea, Bihar, from three persons -- Suraj Prasad, Varengnow Kahorngam and Clearson Kabo, the official said. The weapons included two under barrel grenade launchers, one AK series rifle and 1,800 rounds of 5.56 mm ammunition which were kept concealed and were being transported by the three persons in the SUV, according to the NIA spokesperson.

The NIA re-registered the case under relevant sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Arms Act, and arrested four more accused -- Tripuari Singh, Mukesh Singh, Ningkhan Sangtam and Santosh Singh -- and filed a chargesheet against the seven accused, the official said. A large number of illegal sophisticated weapons and ammunition were supplied by Sangtam, a self-styled Major of NSCN (IM) -- a major insurgent group in the Northeast -- through an arms dealer in Bihar to absconding accused Bhikhan Ganjhu, the Zonal Commander of the Tritya Prastuti Committee (TPC), a Naxal terrorist gang, the NIA said.

Pratap had transferred a huge amount of funds to the account of accused Ningkhan Sangtam, the spokesperson said. During the searches, several incriminating documents pertaining to monetary transactions have been seized, the NIA said, adding that further investigation in the case was underway.