PATNA: Police in Jharkhand’s Dumka district on Monday recovered a huge cache of traditional weapons usually wielded by tribal people from the boys’ hostel of SP College and detained six boarders of the hostel. Nearly 20,000 bows and arrows, iron axes, pickaxes and machetes along with liquor bottles and bombs were recovered at the hostel run by the State tribal welfare department, said police.
The boarders at the hostel, most of them students of the college under Sidho-Kanhu University, are suspected of having perpetrated violent acts during the Statewide bandh against the Raghubar Das-led government on November 25. The weapons, police believe, had been stored with the intent to start an attack on the government later.
“District police and Rapid Action Force jawans raided the hostel after a tip-off and discovered the weapons. We have detained six hostel boarders, who may be arrested depending on verification and interrogations,” said Dumka SP Prabhat Kumar. The detained hostel boarders are suspected to have led a mob of students and public in setting at least eight lorries afire during the shutdown called by Opposition parties to protest amendments to the CNT Act and SPT Act effected by the State government.
“It is being verified if the hostel houses outsiders who are non-students and habitual offenders. All the boarders have been asked to vacate. After verification of personal and academic details of the boarders, action would be taken,” said Dumka deputy commissioner Rahul Sinha.