PATNA: Top Maoist commander Deepak Oraon, considered a close aide of CPI(Maoist) politburo member Sudhakaran, surrendered himself before Jharkhand police on Saturday. Oraon carried a Rs 10 lakh bounty on his head.
Oraon, also known as Prakash and Sandeep, had been living with “Category A” Maoist commanders Sudhakaran and Arvindjee in the Budha Pahar hills of Jharkhand’s Maoist-infested Garhwa and Latehar districts. He had left the site a few days before Arvindjee, a central committee member of the outlawed leftwing outfit CPI(Maoist), passed away there on March 21, said police.
Wanted in dozens of cases of Maoist violence in Lohardaga, Latehar and Gumla districts, Oraon surrendered himself along with firearms he owned before ADG (Ranchi range) Amol Venukant Homkar at the latter’s office. Oraon was handed Rs 50,000 in cash as per the Jharkhand government’s surrender policy for left-wing rebels and also a cheque of Rs 10 lakh.
Oraon reportedly told police that Sudhakaran had left Budha Pahar a few weeks ago and is currently living in border areas of Latehar, Lohardaga and Gumla districts.
Police sources said Oraon is a resident of Tato village in Lohardaga district and had been involved in Maoist activities for the past twenty years. He was wanted in the murder of a registered medical practitioner (RMP) at Serengdag in Lohardaga district on September 19, 2016, said sources.
“The surrenders of Maoists are a result of the rising police crackdown on their activities in south Chotanagpur area. maoist commanders and cadres are being arrested and their safe havens are being destroyed regularly,” said Homkar.
Nine Maoist commanders have been shot dead in encounters with police in five districts of Jharkhand in the past twelve months, he added. Lohardaga district is on top in the state in the surrender of Maoists. As many as 23 Maoists have surrendered in the district since March 2017, added Homkar.
Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das on Saturday held a review of the progress in the development plans for Parasnath and Bhelwa Ghati areas and instructed officials to encourage self-employment in areas affected by left-wing extremism.