Civil rights activists Sunday demanded the early release of a Chhattisgarh resident arrested on suspicion of being a Maoist sympathiser and allegedly involved in illegal money transfer by the Essar group for the rebels - a claim strongly denied by his supporters. Journalist-activist Lingaram Kodopi was arrested Friday along with contractor B.K. Lala following recent WikiLeaks revelations that Essar was paying "protection money" to Maoists in Chhattisgarh.