Patna, April 4 (IANS) In a major operation against Maoists, the Gaya police, in coordination with Bihar Police's Special Task Force (STF), arrested seven Maoist operatives since March 30, recovering a huge cache of arms and ammunition from their possession, some of which were previously looted from the police.
Gaya SSP Anand Kumar stated that the crackdown is part of a continuous drive to dismantle Maoist networks in the district.
On April 3, the district police received Intelligence about Maoist activities in Gangti Bazar under the jurisdiction of the Imamganj police station area.
Accordingly, a special team, led by SP, Gaya City, and comprising Bihar STF and district police, was dispatched to raid the location.
"Upon arrival, a suspect attempted to flee but was immediately chased down and arrested. The accused is identified as Rupesh Paswan, a native of Qadirganj village under Imamganj Police Station jurisdiction. During interrogation, Paswan disclosed the location of hidden arms and ammunition and provided details about two accomplices,” Kumar said.
“Subsequently, we arrested Uday Kumar Yadav and Bablu Kumar. Both were nabbed from Tilathi Hill under Imamganj police station, Chhakkarbandha area, Gaya district. All three have been booked under relevant sections at Imamganj police station,” Kumar said.
The joint team recovered three SLR rifles, 3006 semi-automatic rifles one of which was looted from a private person, 527 live cartridges of different bores, one can bomb weighing about 0.5 kg, 6 detonators with wires, 7 SLR magazines, 2 INSAS rifle magazines, 4 SLR chargers, 2 spotted body pouches, 1 Walkie Talkie and 1 multi-meter, from their possession.
Earlier on March 30, Maoist zonal commander Rajesh Yadav alias Bihad Yadav was arrested from the Raigarh district of Maharashtra.
On April 1, Vikram Kumar alias Kailu Yadav and Lala Sharma alias Lal Sharma were arrested from Gaya, and Brajesh Kumar Singh was arrested on April 2.
"This operation is part of our ongoing efforts to break the backbone of Naxal (Naoist) activity in Gaya. We are committed to ensuring law and order in the region and will continue to track down such elements,” Kumar said.
The crackdown highlights Bihar STF and Gaya police’s intensified focus on dismantling Naxal networks in the Imamganj-Chhakkarbandha belt, a historically Maoist-affected region.
