Journalism of Courage
An alleged Maoist operative wanted in the killing of six policemen has been arrested from Chakan area in Pune district.
The police have identified the accused as Akash Murmu alias Saheb Hansada, a native of Lakhanpur in Dumka district of Jharkhand. A team of Dumka police in Jharkhand, with the help of Pimpri Chinchwad police, arrested Akash late on Saturday evening.
“Akash’s name had cropped up during investigation into the murder of Amarjit Balihar, superintendent (SP) of police, Pakur district, during an ambush in 2013. We got information that he was in Pune. Our team with the help of local police arrested Akash on Saturday from Chakan area in Pune. He was working in a private company in Chakan. We suspect he was residing in Pune for the last couple of years. We brought him to Jharkhand for further investigation,” said Y S Ramesh, SP, Dumka police, while speaking to The Indian Express over phone.
The officer said that Akash identified himself as “Saheb” while working in Pune, and some identity documents have been found in his possession. “He was residing in alone in Pune. He carried a reward of Rs 1 lakh in Jharkhand,” said Ramesh.
Police said he was involved in more Maoist activities in the past and probe is on to know whether he was still active in the banned Maoist movement.
In 2013, Maoists ambushed a police convoy led by SP Amarjit Balihar while he was on way to Pakur after holding a meeting in Dumka. Balihar, a 2003 batch IPS officer, known for his involvement in counter-insurgency operations, was killed along with five other policemen in the attack. The police had earlier arrested seven persons in this case. Last year in September, two of them were awarded death penalty while five others were acquitted by a court in Dumka.
