Jharkhand Maoist leader arrested in Assam

A top Maoist leader from Jharkhand was apprehended on Thursday in Assam's Sonitpur district.

Maoist zonal commander of Jharkhand Amrit Kharwal alias Anandji was arrested along with his brother-in-law at Tezpur.

Acting on a tip-off, police had launched a search operation and arrested the top Maoist leader.

"We were informed by our intelligence report that, 34 year-old Anandji was staying in hotel Jironi lodge," Sonitpur district additional superintendent of police P. K. Nath said.

"We also picked up 24 year-old Anil Singh, brother-in-law of Anandji and a former employee of Power Grid Corporation of India Limited for his involvement with the outfit," police said.

Amrit Kharwal Anandji, the Maoist zonal commander of Latehar, Garwah and Palamau districts of Jharkhand had joined the outfit in 2002.

At total of 18 cases have been registered against Anandji in Jharkhand and Jharkhand police had announced Rs 5 lakh cash on his head.

Meanwhile, police interrogated the arrested Maoist leader for collecting more information about the present activities of the outfit in Assam.

"The nabbed Maoist leader arrived in Assam to set up organizational base in the northern part of the state," a top police official said.

The Maoists continue their recruitment drive in a few districts of Upper Assam area.

Recently, Union minister Jairam Ramesh had said during his visit to Assam that, two districts of Upper Assam- Dibrugarh and Tinsukia- are likely to be listed as left wing extremism (LWE) affected area soon.

(Reporting by Hemanta Kumar Nath)