Latehar Police scored a breakthrough on Wednesday with the arrest of two wanted members of the Jharkhand Jan Mukti Parishad (JJMP). Those held include area commander Sunil Oraon, who carried a reward of Rs two lakh, and Mukesh Lohra. Both are residents of the Latehar district.
Superintendent of Police Kumar Gaurav had received intelligence inputs that Sunil Oraon was hiding near Nawagarh under Sadar police station, while Mukesh Lohra was believed to be in the vicinity of Purni Palheya village under Manika police station. The information suggested that both had retreated to their native villages to evade police action.
Acting on these inputs, the SP formed a special team led by DSP Arvind Kumar. Separate police units launched synchronised raids in the early hours of Wednesday. Between 3 am and 4 am, both suspects were taken into custody.
According to the SP, Sunil Oraon is named in more than seven cases across Latehar and neighbouring police station areas. Mukesh Lohra faces two cases. Police say both were involved in a recent gunfight with security forces and had gone underground after the encounter.
Police officials said the arrests further weaken the JJMP, which has suffered sustained setbacks over the past six months. In this period, the outfit’s supremo and another senior cadre were killed in encounters, while several others have been arrested. Many of the organisation’s senior members have surrendered, leaving only a handful still active. Police operations against the remaining cadres are continuing.
The team involved in Wednesday’s action included DSP Arvind Kumar, Manika police station in-charge Shashi Kumar, Latehar police station in-charge Ramakant Gupta, and sub-inspectors Vikrant Upadhyay, Rahul Kumar Sinha, Vikas Kumar, and Dharmveer Singh. Police officials said coordinated field efforts led to the swift arrests.