RANCHI: Police have recovered bodies of seven of nine tribals kidnapped by a rival group from Buru-Gulikera village under Gudri police station of Chaibasa in Jharkhand on Sunday, after an overnight search.
A manhunt has been launched for the killers, understood to be Pathalgadhi protesters, even as CM Hemant Soren ordered the constitution of a special investigation team (SIT) under a DSP to probe the murders, Wednesday.
Police said the nine were abducted by suspected Pathalgadi supporters after a violent clash which took place in the village on Sunday during a meeting called by villagers.
The Sunday meeting had been called by villagers to resolve the issue and ensure peace, but turned violent again and led to the killings. The incidents have terrorised the villagers causing many to flee their homes.
“The nine were taken away by Pathalgadi supporters. When they did not come back by Monday evening, their kin lodged an FIR on Monday,” said a villager. Police, however, received strong inputs that those abducted had been killed in the forests.
On Wednesday, their bodies were recovered 4 km away in deep forest, though the fate of two others was not immediately known.
“We have recovered seven bodies and sent them for postmortem,” said ADG (Operations) ML Meena.
He said some of the culprits have been detained and are being interrogated. He did not say whether the incident was related to ‘Patthalgadi’ or maoists who dominate areas around.
CM warns of strict action CM Soren said strict action would be taken against those involved.
Notably, the new government had dropped sedition cases lodged against 10,000 ‘Patthalgadi’ supporters, in its first Cabinet meeting within hours of the CM being sworn in on December 29.