Security forces Wednesday killed a Maoist carrying a reward of Rs 5 lakh during a jungle shootout in Jharkhand’s Bokaro district that also left a COBRA jawan and an unidentified person dead.
Police had earlier claimed that the body of the last individual, found in civilian clothing, was that of a Maoist. They later said his identity is yet to be ascertained.
Jharkhand DGP Anurag Gupta said the Maoist killed during the gunfight was Kunwar Manjhi, a resident of Bokaro who carried a reward of Rs 5 lakh and was wanted in over two dozen cases.
Twenty-one of these cases were registered in Bokaro and seven in Hazaribagh, show police records.
He was also involved in a shootout with police on April 21.
The jawan of the COBRA 209 battalion, Praneshwar Koch, was critically injured in the operation at Birhordera under Gomia police station limits and later succumbed to his injuries.
A joint search operation by COBRA-209 and the district police was underway in the area to locate other suspected Maoists.
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The DGP said the joint combing operation began early Wednesday morning. At Around 6 am, he said, the forces came face to face with the Maoists, leading to an exchange of fire.
A police statement said that top CPI (Maoist) leaders, including Sahdev Soren (a central committee member) and Birsen (a special area committee member) were suspected to be planning a major attack in the area.
“The second body, found in civilian attire, remains unidentified,” said the DGP.
The DGP said that Koch, the slain COBRA jawan, was from Kokrajhar in Assam. Assam Chief Minister Hemanta Biswa Sarma paid tribute to him on X.
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An AK-47 assault rifle and a magazine with ammunition were recovered from the site along with other daily-use items.
