Rs 5 lakh please

Bangalore businessman receives a courteously worded letter, purportedly from a Naxal group, seeking cash

Rs 5 lakh please

Bangalore businessman receives a courteously worded letter, purportedly from a Naxal group, seeking cash

A letter from a "Naxal group" is politely demanding Rs 5 lakh from a Bangalore businessman.

Venkatapathi, a resident of HRBR Layout, has filed a complaint with the Banasawadi police seeking protection.

Oh, really?

Police aren't convinced Naxals are behind the letter.

On May 1, Venkatapathi received a letter by post, written in Kannada, on a letterhead that identified the sender as a "Naxalite Sanghatane" (Naxalite organisation).

The letter assures Venkatapathi that all the money will be used for the cause, and not for personal benefit.

The letter warns of dire consequences if the demand is not met: "No one has refused to our demand and no one has tried to cheat us."

The letter says the group is "hungry" and Venkatapathi's contribution will be "priceless".

With blessings

The group promises to help Venkatapathi if he complies with the demand. Uncharacteristically for a Maoist group, it says, "God will bestow you with peace and prosperity." (Maoists are atheists).

The letter gives the name of Nayak NX as the one who will collect the money near Nelamangala.

"Help us and prosper. This is our first and final letter. Do not go to police or you will be in trouble," the letter warns.

The writer signs off with "Jai Naxalism, Jai Maoism, Jai Hind."

Who called?

Venkatapathi's complaint says he heard from Nayak on May 1 around 4 pm. Nayak reportedly said he had been assigned to collect the cash, and referred to the letter.

When Venkatapathi denied receiving a letter, Nayak reportedly disconnected the phone stating he would call again.

"Someone posing as a Naxalite is trying to cheat Venkatapathi," said a police officer. "We are working on our leads."

What the letter says
"Please don't be afraid, we are also human beings and are concerned about society. We believe in love and trust, that is why we left our families and homes and are roaming in the forest.

We are fighting against the bad government which is troubling helpless, backward people.

We have organised to fight for the rights of these deprived people and restore Maoist ideologies for a peaceful society.

In order to carry out the fight, we need lots of money, for which the organisation seeks help from rich people like you. So long, we were collecting money from the rural rich people, but now we have identified a few rich people from urban areas. We are collecting money from them to continue our crusade.