Wanted KLO militant dies 'unnatural' death

Bharati Das wife of Jeevan Singh, alias Tushar Das, Chairman of the banned Kamtapur Liberation Organisation (KLO), died under mysterious conditions on Sunday night. Bharati Das was also a trained KLO militant who was absconding and wanted.

According to police sources, an ambulance from Birtamore, Jhapa district of Nepal brought Bharati Das to North Bengal Medical College and Hospital (NBMCH). The doctors at NBMCH declared her "brought dead". She was accompanied by her 12-year-old and 9-year-old daughters. She was registered in the name of Rekha Rajbonshi (42 years) wife of Kamal Rajbonshi in the NBMCH.

On investigation, her true identity was revealed as Bharati Das, wife of Tushar Das. It is believed that she was undergoing treatment at a nursing home in Birtamore, Nepal. "It is confirmed that she is Bharati Das, wife of Jeevan Singh. She died an unnatural death," stated Neeraj Kumar Singh, Commissioner of Police, Siliguri Metropolitan Police. Bharati, who had received arms training had been absconding since 2004 and was reportedly living in camps in Assam, Bhutan, Mayanmar and Nepal shifting base.

Police then informed Bharati's relatives along with front rung surrendered KLO militants for identification of the deceased.

Her daughters Tithi (12) and Priti (9) were sent to a shelter home through the Child Welfare Committee. On Monday morning, relatives of the deceased along with front rung surrendered KLO operatives arrived at the NBMCH.

"I had last met Jeevan and Bharati in 2012 in Nepal. After that, we lost all contacts with them. The police informed us last night about her death," stated Tom Adhikari, surrendered KLO militant.

Tom is believed to be a close confidant of Jeevan Singh. He had received arms training in the 2003 batch. 42-year-old Bharati's brother Ajit Das, a resident of Kumargram of the Alipurduar district stated: "Since 2004 we had no contacts with her. She was sent by the administration and police in 2004 to coax Jeevan to return to India and surrender."

Jeevan Singh's sister Sumitra Das who is a resident of Barobhisa stated: "I had last met them in 2009. After that, we had no contact. I want to take my nieces home. They have no one to look after them now." After post-mortem, the body was handed over to the relatives. "Bharati was sick and could have died from these ailments. However, we have to wait for the post-mortem reports for confirmation," stated a police source. The Kamtapur Liberation Organization (KLO) was formed on December 28, 1995 by students from the indigenous Rajbongshi community. They launched an armed struggle to form a Kamtapur State comprising districts of North Bengal and Assam. The outfit was banned by the Indian government in 1997.