Mrituanjay Kumar
Ranchi
One of most wanted Maoists in Jharkhand and neighbouring states, Misir Besra, who was carrying a reward of Rs 1 crore was arrested on Tuesday evening from a forest near Dhanbad. Besra was arrested with his two Maoists members Mochu and Saurabh alias Gaurav and two other villagers from the Giridih-Dhanbad border area.
The joint security team held a press meet led by Jharkhand DGP, Tadasha Mishra to inform the arrest of Misir Besra.
Besra was a resident of Harladih of Giridih who was wanted in several; cases related to Maoists activities in various states. A joint team comprising the Jharkhand Police, the CoBRA battalion of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), and the Dhanbad-Giridih police participated in this operation. With this arrest, the ‘Red Terror’—which had spread panic across Jharkhand for two decades through gunfire, landmines, and bloody attacks—came to an end.
Addressing a press meet at the Police headquarter in the State Capital, IG (Operation), Narendra Kumar Singh said that Besra has long been considered a key orchestrator of Maoists activities in states like Jharkhand, Bihar, Chhattisgarh Orissa and West Bengal. He had been on the security forces ‘most wanted’ list for last several years.
Singh further informed that the operation was carried out based on tip-off received by security agencies. “Information had been received that Besra, accompanied by his associates, was traveling from Dhanbad towards Giridih in a Tata Magic vehicle,” he added.
The IG (Operation said that upon receiving this information, Dhanbad Senior Superintendent of Police Prabhat Kumar and Giridih Superintendent of Police Dr Vimal Kumar immediately launched a joint operation. The operation was overseen by CRPF IG Saket Singh and the IG (Operations). Thorough preparations had been made for the operation,” he added.
On the occasion CRPF IG Saket Singh said that the police reported that a joint team of security forces had already laid a siege at the Dhanbad-Giridih border. As soon as the Tata Magic vehicle arrived, the personnel surrounded it from all sides. Upon confirming their identities, Misir Besra and his four associates were immediately arrested, he added.
The CRPF IG further said that remarkably, the operation was so foolproof that not a single bullet had to be fired throughout the entire mission. “During the arrest, three AK-47 rifles, several magazines, and a large quantity of live ammunition were recovered from the Tata Magic vehicle. Preliminary investigations suggest that these weapons were intended to be used to carry out a major Naxal attack. Fortunately, the police had received prior information about the plan,” he added.
