The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on December 1 chargesheeted eight persons for allegedly supplying deadly explosives, a drone and other equipment to the banned Communist Party of India (Maoist) for attacking security forces deployed in the Naxal-affected areas.
All the eight accused are in judicial custody following their arrest. Three of them, allegedly working as couriers for the proscribed outfit, were arrested while on their way to supply the explosives, drones and a lathe machine, whereas the others were arrested subsequently.
According to the NIA, the explosives seized from the three accused, named Punem Nageswar Rao, Devanuri Mallikarjun Rao and Vollepogula Umashankar, was originally supplied to them by accused Jannu Koti, Arepalli Srikanth, Tallapalli Arogyam and Bontha Mahender. The latter four had got it from Sonaboina Kumaraswamy, who held a licence for dealing in explosives.
