Setting a new pattern in perpetrating violence and spreading fear among the people, the Maoists killed one of the three persons they had kidnapped from a village under Mathili block while releasing two others.
Almost in a similar fashion, the Red rebels had abducted three persons from another village under the same block and killed two of them while releasing the third person.
According to sources, armed Maoists had abducted Buduram Dharua, Budu Nayak and Mansai Kiar from Mahupadar village in Mathili block of the district on Tuesday night. The body of Dhurua, Naib Sarpanch of Mahupadar village, was found with his throat slit on a forest road on the outskirts of Mahupadar village bordering neighbouring Chhattisgarh on Saturday morning.
While Dharua was believed to have been killed on Friday on the suspicion of being a police informer, Budu and Mansai were released by the Red rebels.
The killing was suspected to have been committed by Maoists from neighbouring Chhattisgarh.
The incident coincided with the visit of DGP Prakash Mishra to the Maoist affected district.
Confirming the murder of Dharua, SP Akhileswar Singh said after the Naib Sarpanch had recently bagged a contract work, the Maoists had demanded ` 50,000 as extortion money from him. As he expressed his helplessness to pay the money on the ground that he would hardly earn a profit of the same amount, the Maoists abducted him and later killed him, he added.
On abduction and subsequent release of two others, Singh said it was a deliberate ploy of the Maoists to spread fear among the people. As the Red rebels were cornered by the operations of security forces, they were resorting to such desperate measures, he added.
This is the second violent act by the Maoists. Around a week back, they had abducted three villagers from Kiang village under Mathili block and killed two of them.
While the third person was released, the Maoists also blew up a telephone tower there.