The National Investigation Agency (NIA), in operations conducted with the support of Jharkhand Police, has seized a large number of explosives, arms and ammunition from the state in the People’s Liberation Front of India (PLFI) terror funding case over the past two days, the agency said on May 31.
The seizure was made from Khunti, Gumla and Simdega districts of Jharkhand on May 29 and May 30 based on disclosures made by Dinesh Gope, self-styled supremo of PLFI who was arrested by the NIA on May 21.
Dinesh Gope, who has been in NIA custody for the last eight days, had earlier too led the NIA to seize a huge cache of arms and ammunition in a forest in the Gumla district.
Dinesh Gope, who had been absconding before he was caught in New Delhi, led the NIA and Jharkhand Police on Monday to recover about 62.3 kg of Gelatin and 732 rounds of 5.56 mm ammunition from the Jhariatoli and Garai area in the Khunti district of Jharkhand.
On the same day, one pistol, 11 rounds of 5.56 mm ammunition and 30 rounds of .303 ammunition were seized from Kisni village in the Kamdara area of Gumla district.
Subsequently, on May 30, the NIA said two IEDs were also seized from the forest hill of Mahuatoli in the Simdega district of Jharkhand.
This was the third such seizure in less than a week. On May 26, a huge cache of ammunition (1,245 rounds of 7.62 mm and 271 rounds of 5.56 mm) was seized as a result of sustained investigations into the case following Gope’s arrest.
Dinesh Gope alias Kuldeep Yadav alias Badku of district Khunti in Jharkhand was earlier charge-sheeted by the NIA relating to the recovery of demonetized currency of Rs 25.38 lakhs from the operatives of PLFI– a proscribed Naxal outfit of Jharkhand. He had been absconding and was finally nabbed by the NIA on May 21 and sent to NIA custody by NIA Special Court on May 22.
The NIA had also declared a Reward of Rs 5 lakh for inputs leading to the capture of Gope, in addition to the reward of Rs 25 lakh announced by the Jharkhand Government.
Dinesh Gope used to extort money and execute attacks through his PLFI team members to terrorize and intimidate businessmen, contractors and the public at large, NIA investigations have shown.
“The accused, along with his associates, was involved in depositing the demonetized currency in a bank account at a petrol pump, to be later collected through levy and extortion,” said the NIA, adding “the illegal money was then invested through banking channels and dubious shell companies in the name of close associates and family members of the accused Dinesh Gope.”
Known previously as Jharkhand Liberation Tigers (JLT), PLFI is responsible for hundreds of terror incidents in Jharkhand, Bihar and Odisha including several murders through the use of weapons, as per the NIA investigations.
The outfit used to lure unemployed youth by providing them with motorbikes, mobile phones and easy money.
(with inputs from ANI)
