The Bihar police on Saturday arrested Maoist Ram Pravesh Baitha alias Satish, allegedly in charge of Bihar operations, along with Pravesh Mishra, an alleged arms supplier to the Maoists, Amit Kumar, IG-Operations, said. A team of the Special Task Force and Muzaffarpur district police arrested the duo from the Motipur area in Muzaffarpur.
Baitha is a resident of Madhuban, Motihari district. Presently, he is a member of Bihar, Jharkhand, North Chhattisgarh Special Area Committee (BJNCSAC) and in charge of Maoist operations in Bihar, Mr. Kumar said.
“He is involved in more than 30 serious Naxal incidents including recent ones. He was recently promoted as member of BJNCSAC. He was last arrested in 2008, but released on bail in February 2012,” he said.
Mishra, on the other hand is the brother of Pramod Mishra leader of the Maoist Communist Centre (MCC). “Both Baitha and Mishra were having a meeting in Motipur, where Baitha’s in-laws reside. The police are registering a fresh FIR against them under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA). They will be produced before the court and would be sent to judicial custody,” Mr. Kumar said.
Last year saw heavy Maoist activity in Bihar. In December, seven police personnel were killed when their vehicle exploded in a landmine blast in the Naxal-dominated district of Aurangabad. In November, Maoists opened fire on a train killing three police personnel. In February, eight persons were killed in a landmine blast in Gaya district.
