“We have learnt that the February 15 attack was planned and coordinated by Bikash, an associate of Kishenji,” said West Bengal DGP Bhupinder Singh.

He is also the one behind the attack on the Sankrail police station in October last year in which two policemen were killed and the officer-in-charge of the outpost abducted, the officer said. Detailing the chain of events on the fateful day, he said nearly 70 Maoists had arrived in three cars at the Silda EFR camp and began to attack from various directions. “The first volley of bullets was fired from the public toilet adjacent to the camp by Maoists armed with AK-47 rifles and small arms. This attack killed the sentry on duty,” he said. It took the Maoists two months to plan the attack and had followed the daily activities at the camp during the period, said Singh