Ranchi, April 22 -- In a significant blow to the Maoist insurgency in Jharkhand, a top Maoist commander known as Vivek, who had a bounty of Rs.1 crore on his head, was gunned down along with seven other Maoist operatives in a fierce encounter with security forces in the Bokaro district on Monday.
The deadly gun battle unfolded during the early hours of the day in the forested and hilly terrain near the Lugu Pahad area, which is known to be a Maoist stronghold. The operation was carried out jointly by the elite CoBRA battalion of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and the Jharkhand State Police.
State police informed that the operation was launched based on precise intelligence inputs indicating the movement of a large group of armed ...