Chatra (Jharkhand), June 10 (IANS) The Jharkhand Police have arrested a senior Maoist leader and recovered a huge cache of ammunition from a forest in Chatra district, officials said.

Arjun Ganjhu, a top commander of the banned Maoist outfit Tritiya Sammelan Prastuti Committee (TSPC), was apprehended during a raid in Tikda village under the Lawalong police station area.

Acting on a tip-off about his movement, a special team led by Simaria SDPO Shubham Khandelwal conducted the operation and nabbed the militant.

Chatra Superintendent of Police Sumit Agrawal informed during a press conference on Tuesday that a country-made pistol was recovered from Ganjhu at the time of his arrest.

Following interrogation, he revealed the location of a hidden arms cache in a nearby forest. A search led to the recovery of 723 live cartridges concealed underground in a box.

The cache included 477 rounds of INSAS rifle ammunition and 246 rounds of .303 rifle cartridges — indicating preparations for potential attacks or supply to other cadres in the region.

SP Agrawal said the recovery dealt a blow to the operational capabilities of the TSPC in the area.

Ganjhu is a repeat offender and had previously been jailed for involvement in Maoist-related activities.

In a separate operation, Lohardaga Police arrested another absconding Maoist, Lalind Mahato alias Rajkumar Yadav, who had been evading capture for several years.

Lalind, a resident of Semardih village in Kisko police station limits, has multiple cases lodged against him in Lohardaga, Latehar, and other districts of Jharkhand.

Lohardaga SP Sadique Anwar Rizvi said that Lalind was associated with the squad of Ravindra Ganjhu, a zonal commander of the CPI (Maoist), who carries a bounty of Rs 15 lakh on his head.

Police believe that Lalind’s arrest could yield crucial intelligence about Maoist activities and logistics in the region.

After his court appearance, preparations are being made to send him to judicial custody.

–IANS

snc/skp