Maoist politburo member arrested, girlfriend flees

RANCHI: Jharkhand police on Tuesday arrested a central military commission member of the CPI(Maoist) from Muzaffarpur district in Bihar and consider him an "important catch" at a time when the Chhattisgarh ambush has rattled the Centre.
The Maoist leader, who is also a politburo member of the organization, was allegedly involved in the Latehar attack where 11 people, including civilians, were killed.
The arrest of Anoop, alias Anuj Thakur (30) came as a blow to the Bihar-Jharkhand North Chhattisgarh Special Area Committee, of which Thakur was the secretary.
Confirming the arrest, DGP Rajiv Kumar said, "Thakur has been leading almost all Maoist activities in Jharkhand and Bihar and other neighbouring states. It is one of the most important catches for us so far," said Kumar.
The top Maoist leader was with her girlfriend at a hotel near Muzaffarpur railway station when Jharkhand police caught him. His girlfriend, however, could not be arrested.
The secretary of Bihar Jharkhand North Chhatisgarh Special Area Committee of the CPI Maoist,
Thakur was entrusted with planning the nefarious designs of the powerful Koel Sankh Zone of the Maoist that spreads through Palamu, Garhwa, Latehar, Lohardaga, Gumla, Gaya, Aurangabad and North Chhattisgarh districts and was considered the most notorious rebel zones in Bihar and Jharkhand when its former secretary and a dreaded Maoist Prabhat Mochi was arrested in December 2012.
"He is being brought to Latehar by a police team. He would be produced in the court on Wednesday," said the DGP.