Security personnel seized at least two storage lockers (almirahs) and a large stockpile of ammunition during a joint operation along the Jharkhand-Bihar border today. The operation, targeting the outlawed CPI (Maoist), took place in the Chakarbandha forest region on Wednesday.
Palamu Superintendent of Police, Reeshma Rameshan, said that the Maoists had concealed several landmines inside a cave, likely with the intention of using them later against the security forces.
She further reported that the forces recovered two lockers believed to have belonged to senior Maoist leader Sandeep Yadav, who had a bounty of Rs 25 lakh on his head and passed away in 2023.
The lockers, found deep in the forest, were reportedly used to stash extortion money collected from contractors and businesspeople, she added.
The SP said that the recovered lockers were found empty. It is suspected that a close aide of Sandeep Yadav might have removed the contents after his death. Initial observations suggest the lockers were cleared out quite recently, she added.
After the demise of Sandeep Yadav, who had a Rs 25 lakh bounty on him, leadership in the region reportedly passed to Nitesh Yadav, who now carries a reward of Rs 15 lakh.
According to intelligence inputs, both former Maoist leader Sandeep Yadav and current commander Nitesh Yadav had stashed weapons and ammunition in the Pachrukhiya area of Chakarbandha, located in Bihar’s Gaya district.
Acting on a tip-off received by the Palamu SP, a coordinated inter-state operation was launched under the leadership of SP (Operations) Rakesh Kumar Singh.
The joint operation involved forces from Jharkhand Jaguar, Bihar’s Special Task Force (STF), and the police teams from Palamu and Aurangabad. During the operation, authorities uncovered over half a dozen landmines and explosive devices hidden in a cave within the Chakarbandha hills.
Notably, the area under operation falls within a territory jointly controlled by Maoists from both Jharkhand and Bihar.
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