In a joint operation, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and Jharkhand Police arrested Dinesh Gope, the head of a banned extremist outfit People's Liberation Front of India (PLFI). Gope had a bounty of Rs 30,00,000 on his head out of which Rs 25,00,000 has been declared by Jharkhand Police and Rs 5,00,000 have been declared by the NIA, reported news agency ANI.
According to a report by Hindi news platform Prabhat Khabar, the arrest took place in Nepal. Gope will be brought to Delhi from Nepal and then taken to Ranchi.
Prior to this, Jharkhand Police had arrested two Naxals of the PLFI in February from the Latehar district and it also recovered pamphlets of the extremist organisation from them, said a police official, as per ANI's report. The two that got arrested were identified as Pratul Kumar Kachhap and Kardeep Oraon. A police official while talking to ANI said, "We received secret information that some persons have gathered and had gathered near the Bendi railway station to carry out some untoward incident and extort money from the contractors. Immediately, a team was formed under the leadership of station in-charge Chandrashekhar Chaudhary."
The official while expanding on the arrest said that the constituted team upon reaching the upgraded Middle School, Bendi (Ledhpa) found the extremists to be extorting from contractors on the phone.
Both extremists were said to have a criminal background.
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In that case, Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) Santosh Kumar Mishra in a press briefing said, "Police have recovered a 7.65 mm pistol, six bullets, three mobiles, and a pamphlet of militant outfit PLFI from the arrested militants." Police lodged a case against the extremists under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Arms Act.