An Essar Group general manager was arrested on Tuesday for his role in paying "protection money" to the Maoists to help the company reopen a 267-km iron ore slurry supply pipeline in Chhattisgarh's Dantewada district, police said. The company has denied paying money to the rebels.
D.V.C.S. Verma was arrested after the interrogation of two people arrested Sep 9 at a weekly market in the insurgency-hit Dantewada, a police officer said.
Verma, who is based in Kirandul town in Dantewada, "has been arrested after police got evidence of the Essar Group's role in huge cash transfers to the Maoists," Superintendent of Police Ankit Garg.
He hinted that more Essar officials in Chhattisgarh and outside could be questioned.
Verma, who was arrested on charges of sedition, was sent to two days' police custody by a local court. His arrest followed questioning of Essar contractor B.K. Lala, who was caught while handing over Rs.15 lakh to suspected rebel sympathiser Lingaram Kodopi.
Police claimed Kodopi was receiving the money on behalf of Maoists.
Meanwhile, Chhattisgarh's main opposition Congress reiterated Tuesday that the company should be booked under a stringent law.
"I strongly demand that cases be registered against Essar Group owners for handing over massive amounts as 'protection money' to various factions of Maoists," state Congress president Nandkumar Patel told IANS.
He said that provisions of the Chhattisgarh Special Public Security Act (CSPSA) should be invoked.
However, the company has denied any wrongdoing.
"The Essar Group vehemently rejects all allegations made regarding payments to the Maoists. Essar would like to state that such baseless allegations are being made to hurt the image and reputation of the group, which is a law-abiding corporate," it said in a statement.
The company said that Essar Steel is the largest private sector investor in Chhattisgarh's Bastar region, that includes Dantewada. It added that its facilities relating to a plant and slurry pipeline have been damages by Maoists at least 15 times since it was commissioned in October 2005.