Cops put up posters seeking info on PLFI chief

Two days after three close aides of PLFI supremo Dinesh Gope were arrested from neighbouring Bihar, the Jharkhand Police seems to have intensified its drive to nab the banned outfit’s chief, who carries a bounty of Rs 25 lakh on head, as it urged locals here to pass on information related to him or his coterie.

Posters seeking whereabouts of Gope with mention of the cash award have been put up in Khunti district, of which the PLFI chief is a resident, with the police giving assurance that names and details of the informers will be kept confidential.

Separate posters announcing cash rewards for CPI(Maoist) members, too, have also been put on display in parts of the district.

Three insurgents of the PLFI -- Nivesh Kumar (32), Subham Poddar (20) and Dhruv Kumar Singh (32) --- were arrested in a joint operation by the Jharkhand and Bihar Police on Tuesday.

Ranchi Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Surendra Kumar Jha said the three were close associates of Gope, and their arrest was a major achievement for the force.

A huge cache of ammunition, Rs 12.21 lakh in cash, ATM cards and pictures of sophisticated weapons were seized from the possession of the trio.

PLFI is a splinter group of the CPI(Maoist).