Raipur: In a significant blow to the proscribed Maoist outfit, a hardcore cadre carrying a cumulative bounty of Rs 24 lakh on his head has been apprehended by police in insurgency-hit Bijapur district of Chhattisgarh on Thursday, August 29.
Vikas alias Sainu Munshi Jaittu (35) was apprehended from Bhatapalli village under Bhairamgarh police station limits of Bijapur. He was nabbed following a joint team of police and Chhattisgarh Armed Force (CAF) raided the location on the basis of intel about his movement.
The raid was conducted when Vikas was being shifted to a private clinic at Jagdalpur for treatment, the security personnel also seized Rs 80000 in cash, a Maoist uniform, extremist literature, pamphlets, notebooks and medicines from the possession of the accused.
The arrested Maoist, Vikas was a member of the Aheri Dalam Divisional Committee under the South Gadchiroli Division of the outlawed Community Party of India (Maoist) who has arrived in Bastar for treatment on advice of one of his acquaintance associated with the Maoist outfit.
He has arrived in Jagdalpur for treatment on the advice of Dilip Bedja, a Divisional Committee Member (DVCM) under the National Park Area Committee of the Maoist outfit who has even assisted him with money, informed an official of the police familiar with the development.
Vikas, a resident of Maharashtra has been named in as many as 35 cases lodged in separate police stations of Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and Telangana for which a reward of Rs 8 lakh was announced on him by the Chhattisgarh government. He was also carrying a reward of Rs 16 lakh as announced on him by the Maharashtra government.
Following his arrest, Vikas was subsequently produced before a local court from where he was sent to jail. He was reported to be active near the inter-state border of Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh, an area considered a hotbed of Maoist insurgency.
It is worth mentioning here that security forces have been continuously running intel based operations against the Maoist operatives across separate districts of conflict-ridden Bastar and in adjacent areas of bordering states such as Maharashtra, Telangana and Odisha hit by Maoist insurgency.
In a similar operation launched on Thursday morning itself, a joint team of security forces have also neutralised three female Maoist cadres following an exchange of fire in the forests of Abujhmaad in Narayanpur district. The forces have also recovered arms and ammunition including a 303 bore rifle and 315 bore guns upon searching the spot.
Those killed in the encounter were associated with the People’s Liberation Guerilla Army (armed wing of the CPI Maoist) battalion no 05 and members of North Bastar Division Committee.
Notably, a total of 182 Maoists have been so far killed during several operations conducted by the security forces in the state of Chhattisgarh in the last 7-8 months while the number of surrendered cadres in the corresponding period has crossed over 550.
