Sundargarh police with William Marandi. Picture by Uttam Kumar Pal

Jamshedpur, Dec. 14: One might think the poor and marginalised without opportunities are the only ones to leave home and family to join extremists.

Meet William Marandi, the 28-year-old arms trainer of the rebels based in the Saranda forest of West Singhbhum.

A graduate in liberal arts from Pune University in Maharashtra, he is well-read and well-travelled and can converse fluently in English and Hindi.

An expert in landmine explosives, Marandi alias Napoleon, had made Saranda his second home after his rebel bosses directed him to cement the outfit?s base in the forest zone four years ago.

William was arrested at Bhalulata railway station yesterday morning by Sundargarh police of Orissa when he was about to board a Chakradharpur-bound train.

He was on his way to Ranchi to make purchases for his squad members based at Saranda.

Sundargarh police extensively quizzed the Naxalite for several hours. They recovered a police uniform, a booklet on rebel literature and cash from Marandi. He has been forwarded to judicial custody. West Singhbhum police have been informed of the arrest. ?Napoleon is a graduate in liberal arts from Pune University. He had done his Plus-Two from a private school in West Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh and his schooling from his home district of Jamtara in Jharkhand,? Sundargah police said.

According to Sundargarh superintendent of police Yaswant Zatua, the rebel can converse in English and Hindi fluently. ?He is well-read and with sharp features. He has travelled a lot in Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra,? the senior police official said.

The youth, who appeared calm during the interrogation, told the police that he had made up his mind to join the rebel group in the late 1990s, as he was pained and frustrated by the ?all-round corruption and exploitation?.

He wanted the have-nots of the society to get a better deal. Marandi reportedly told interrogators that he has no regrets of joining the rebel group as he felt they were capable of setting things right in society.

?He was one of the rebels involved in encounters with the police in West Singhbhum, including the Betkelsoi and Baliba incidents, in which a number of policemen were killed in landmine blasts,? police said.