40kg explosives seized in Jamui ahead of polls

PATNA: Security forces foiled a major Maoist operation ahead of the state election with the recovery of around 40kg of explosives from hideouts in Jamui district on Monday. Jamui is to go to the polls in the first phase on October 28.
A joint team of CRPF, STF and the district armed police carried out a search operation in Maniksthan forest under Jhajha police station area in the district.The police operation started early in the morning and yielded ammonium nitrate stocked in three buried plastic containers.
Jamui SP PK Mandal said, “The police got information about the meeting of armed squad members of the outlawed CPI (Maoist) led by Pintu Rana to chalk out an attack on security forces during the election. ASP (operation) Sudhanshu Kumar led the search operation.” The drive against Maoists will continue.
According to authoritative sources, Pintu Rana has been camping in the area for the past few weeks. “The conversation of some top Maoist leaders was intercepted by intelligence agencies, which suggested that Rana was camping in Maniksthan forest,” a source said.
In neighbouring Lakhisarai, police arrested a hardcore Maoist activist Sanjay Koda from a village under Chanan police station on Monday. Koda was wanted for the kidnapping of the mukhiya of Bhalui panchayat for extortion early this year.
Channan SHO Srikant Suman said Koda was involved in the killing of the husband of the sarpanch of Borba panchayat earlier. “Senior police officers are interrogating the arrested Maoist, who was on the run for long,” the SHO added.
The security forces have stepped up search operations in the Naxal-hit districts ahead of the October 28 polls. Majority of the constituencies going to polls in the first phase are affected by left-wing extremism.
Gaya, Aurangabad, Nawada, Jamui, Lakhisarai, Munger and parts of Rohtas, Bhojpur and Kaimur districts are hotbeds of Maoists. However, their activities have been contained to a large extent in recent years.
The state is hopeful of being allotted 300 companies of the central armed police forces for the election.