Three hardcore Maoists were arrested and weapons and explosives seized during a raid by security personnel in the forests located on the Orissa and West Bengal border, police said.
After a tip off, security personnel from Orissa and West Bengal raided Jhauri and Telia, two adjacent forests, and destroyed a camp run by the rebels.
The ultra leaders Kishore, Ranjan and Dipa managed to flee the spot but three of their associates were nabbed by the security personnel, Superintendent of Police (Mayurbhanj) Dayal Gangwar said.
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The nabbed ultras were identified as Umakanta Bera of Pachurakhuara and Subash Badhuka of Badatanga villages under Nayagram police station and Rupaka Mahanta of Ramchandrapur village under Jhargram police station in West Bengal.
The group was active in Gopiballavpur and Nayangram area of West Bengal’s West Midnapore district and Suliapada and Chandia area of Orissa’s Mayurbhanj district, he said.
After a thorough search in in the area, the cops seized at least three rifles, 14 live cartridges and 21 gelatine sticks.
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The group had shot dead Sukanta Mumu of Handibhanga village under Suliapada police station area suspecting him to be a police informer on July 14 and the same night they had torched the house of Shyam Sundar Marandi in the same village and looted his property and cash.
Earlier, on April 11 they had shot dead Goutam Hatoi at Kathasirisi village.