Daijiworld Media Network - Hubli (SP)

Hubli, Jun 15: The tentacles of the naxals, which had so far been confined to the villages located at the foot of the Western Ghats alone, seem to have spread to other places in the state too. The policemen have taken into custody a woman from Shimoga district, on the suspicion that she has close links with the naxals.

The arrested woman has been identified as Vijaya Bai alias Kanyakumari, who is closely connected with the naxal outfits. The arrest was made by the policemen of Dharwad Keshwapur suburban police station.

Reportedly, Vijaya Bai is the wife of Manohar, a naxal leader who was killed in the recent police encounter near Mavinahole in Shimoga. She is said to have fled from there, to find a foothold in northern Karnataka. The policemen reportedly took her into custody in an operation on the house of her distant relative here, acting on a tip off by the intelligence wing. Some sources however claimed that she was taken into custody from near KIMS Hospital where she had come for some treatment and was then brought to Keshwarpur police station.

Vijaya Bai, who was an active naxal, is said to have been one of the six most wanted naxal leaders listed out by the Anti-naxal Force.

She was later taken to Shimoga by a police team from Shimoga, led by superintendent of police Murugan.