LakhisaraI: The bullet-ridden body
of one of the four policemen taken hostage by Maoists after
Sunday`s encounter in Bihar`s Lakhisarai district was found
today lying in a pool of blood, as the deadline for swapping
them for 8 Maoists expired at 10:00 am.
The body of Lucas Tete, an assistant sub-inspector of
the Bihar Military Police ASI, shot in the chest was found at
the Simra Tari Sringirishi dam in Kajra police station area,
about 150 km from Patna, Superintendent of Police, R K Mishra
said.
A Maoist poster left beside the body, clad in a vest,
blue shirt and sarong, read "Time is running out fast and if
the state government fails to accede to our demand for
releasing eight of our colleagues in jails, the other three
will meet a similar fate."
Self-proclaimed Maoist spokesman Avinash had yesterday
claimed to have killed a hostage, sub-inspector Abhay Yadav.
Avinash telephoned media offices here reiterating
his claim of killing Yadav, the Manikpur Station House
Officer, and renewed his readiness for holding talks with the
state government for freeing the hostages after Chief Minister
Nitish Kumar had yesterday held out an offer of dialogue.
Cobra, CRPF, BMP, STF and SAP of the Bihar police
personnel were conducting intensified search for the three
other policemen being held by the Maoists, Inspector General
(Operations), K S Dwivedi, overseeing the operations, told
PTI.
The Maoists had kidnapped sub-inspectors Rupesh Kumar
and Yadav, BMP havildar Ehtesham Khan and BMP ASI Tete after
the encounter on Sunday, which left eight policemen dead.
They have demanded the release of jailed Maoists Jai
Paswan, Vijay Chourasia, Prem Bhuian, Pramod Barnawal,
Ramvilas Tanti, Ramesh Tirki, Arjun Koda and Rattu Koda by
10:00 am today.The operations were concentrated in the hilly
and forest areas in Dharhara, Kajra and other places in
Munger, Jamui and Lakhisarai districts, Dwivedi said.
BSF helicopters with Cobra personnel on board were in
the air to locate the kidnapped policemen, he said.
Dwivedi said the body of Abhay Yadav, which the
Maoists claimed to have left in the forests in Kajra police
station area, was yet to be found.
The chief minister held several rounds of meetings to
review strategy with his deputy S K Modi, Chief Secretary Anup
Mukherjee, Home Department Principal Secretary Amir Subhani
and Director General of Police Neelmani.
The Bihar government has sought an additional 40
companies of central forces for deployment for stepping up
operations, official sources told PTI.
The Union Home Ministry was also providing another
helicoptor for the search operations.
Joint Secretary (Naxal Management) in the Home Affairs
Ministry Kashmir Singh, said in New Delhi that the Centre was
providing `full support` to Bihar government in the operation
to rescue the policemen being held hostage.
"This is being handled by the state and we are giving
them full support whatever they are asking for. We gave one
helicopter yesterday and another is going today and whatever
force is available, it is being made available to them," he
said.
PTI
