Naru in court on Sunday. Picture by Pradip Sanyal

Khejuri, March 18: The choice of the red T-shirt was a coincidence but the job was cut out for Naru Maity.

The 29-year-old, a resident of Gonara in Patashpur, East Midnapore, is believed to have led the Red Brigade squad to Nandigram eight days ago to take part in the “recapture” of the areas from where CPM supporters were driven out.

“He is a DYFI (the CPM’s youth wing) member in Patashpur and has a following among the young party supporters there. He had been leading such attacks against the Opposition in East Midnapore for the past couple of years,” an officer of Khejuri police station said. Nandigram falls in East Midnapore.

Luck ran out for Naru and his squad after a CBI team led by D. Thakur swooped down on their hideout inside a brick kiln at Sher Khan Chowk, 7 km from Nandigram, on Saturday afternoon.

“A school dropout, Naru came in contact with local CPM members in 1998 and had worked actively during the 2001 Assembly polls. He joined the DYFI and went on to become an active member. Considering his leadership skills, he was assigned the mission this time,” another official said.

The police suspect that he was involved in several instances of rioting in the past but no formal complaint was lodged against him as he had party leaders to protect him.

“Naru was very popular among key local leaders in East Midnapore and had always accompanied them to meetings in the area. He had also been to the Brigade Parade Grounds several times, mobilising people from the district,” the official said.

He had visited several places in East Midnapore for organising meetings. “Since Naru had some idea of Nandigram, he was the first and only choice to lead the team. He had drawn a map of the moujas of Nandigram to prepare his team members for the raid,” a CBI official added.

Today, Naru tried to shy away from the media when he and his team were brought to the Contai court.

The fair-complexioned man, who had been sitting amid a pile of arms and ammunition and planning attacks with his comrades inside a room for the past eight days, looked shaken while being taken to the court lock-up.

However, 15 minutes later, Naru seemed to have regained his composure. Standing inside the lock-up, he glared at reporters who tried to engage him in conversation.

Asked which party he belonged to, Naru retorted in controlled rage: “Apni nijer kaaj karun (Mind your own business).”

When the magistrate directed an attendant to get a declaration from them and their thumb impressions, Naru said they were all literate and asked his men to sign.

As soon as the magistrate announced that they had been remanded in police custody till March 22, Naru whispered something in the ear of one of his gang members and he nodded.