RANCHI: In yet another achievement for the second consecutive day, three Maoists, including Shahdeo Soren with a bounty of Rs 1 crore on his head, were eliminated during an encounter with police in Jharkhand. The incident took place early in the morning in the Pantitary Forests under Girhor police station in Hazaribagh.
Sahdev Soren alias Parvesh was a member of the central committee of the CPI (Maoists). According to police sources, they had been looking for him for a long time. A joint team of Cobra 209 and Hazaribagh police participated in the encounter, they said.
“Sahdeo Soren, a Central Committee Member of CPI(Maoist) carrying a bounty Rs 1 Crore on his head, and two other Maoists were killed in an encounter with a joint team of CoBRA battalion, Giridih and Hazaribagh Police this morning during a search operation being conducted based on intelligence inputs,” Jharkhand Police said in a statement. The dead bodies of Sahdev Soren and two other Maoists have been recovered from the spot, it added.
The second Maoist who got killed in the encounter has been identified as Raghunath Hembrom, who was a member of the Bihar-Jharkhand Special Area Committee (SAC), having a bounty of Rs 25 lakh on his head. The third Maoist eliminated in the encounter include Birsen Ganjhu alias Ramkhelawan, who was a member of the regional committee of CPI (Maoists) and had an award of Rs 10 lakh on his head.
Police sources informed that the all three Maoists were active in the border areas of Jharkhand and Bihar since a long time and were involved in carrying out several major Maoist incidents in the region.
The security forces have also recovered several deadly weapons, including AK-47, from the spot. Hazaribagh SP Anjani Anjan confirmed the incident and said that termed it a big achievement for the security forces.
According to SP, the activities of these Maoists were being monitored very closely, leading to a major success this morning. The search operation has been intensified in the entire region after the encounter to locate the Maoists who succeeded in escaping from the spot taking advantage of the dense forests.
It is believed that some other Maoists have also been injured in the encounter. This action is being considered a big success of Jharkhand Police and Central Security Forces.
Earlier on Sunday, Jharkhand police had also gunned down a wanted Maoist Mukhdeo Yadav, a member of banned Maoist organisation, Tritiya Sammelan Prastuti Committee (TSPC), during an encounter. The fierce encounter, took place between security forces and TSPC in Manatu jungles of Palamu, lasted for several hours.
Notably, as Police action against Maoists and organized criminals have been intensified in Jharkhand, on an average three encounters have taken place every month during the last eight months in the state. A total of 30 Maoists and three notorious criminals have been killed in police encounters by the security forces across Jharkhand in different districts.
Meanwhile, five security personnel have also been martyred during those encounters.