Dantewada blast: Police release accused Maoist's photo, announce cash reward
In a significant development in the probe into the recent Dantewada blast, the Chattisgarh Police released the alleged mastermind's photograph and announced a cash reward for information on involved Maoists. The mastermind has been identified as Jagdish, a dreaded Maoist, reported ANI. Ten District Reserve Guard (DRG) personnel and a civilian driver were killed after Maoists triggered an IED blast in Aranpur on Wednesday.
Why does this story matter?
The major development comes days after 10 security personnel and a driver were killed in an improvised explosive device (IED) blast carried out by Maoists in Chhattisgarh's Dantewada. Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range) Sundarraj P reportedly said the blast took place near Dantewada's Aranpur Police Station area while a team of the police's DRG was returning from an anti-Maoist operation.
Police identify accused Maoist, announce reward
According to the police, the notorious Maoist cadre Jagdish had allegedly devised a plan to detonate an IED to target the DRG personnel. "Police have announced cash reward on the Maoist cadres involved in the blast and according to the intelligence inputs coupled with technical evidence," officials were quoted as saying by ANI. Jagdish was also allegedly spotted near the blast site, they added.
Jagdish's family also associated with extremist movements
The police stated that Maoist Jagdish's family, too, has links to extremist movements. While his wife, Hemla, is reportedly the commander of the Communist Party of India (Maoist)'s doctor's team in the Darbha division, his father-in-law, Vinod, is in charge of the Kanger Ghati Area Committee. They added that the blast might have been carried out by the CPI (Maoist) Darbha division committee.
Maoists used 'foxhole mechanism' to carry out blast
Meanwhile, the police investigation found that the Maoists planted the IED beneath the road through a "foxhole mechanism," a style of digging a tunnel and making the explosive undetectable. According to the officials, the IED was planted around a month and a half ago by digging a tunnel roadside, while the wire linked to it was buried about 2-3 inches into the ground.
Know about the incident
On Wednesday (April 26), an IED blast took place in Chhattisgarh's Dantewada district, killing at least 10 DRG personnel and their civilian driver. The blast reportedly happened at around 1:30 pm on the Aranpur road, nearly 400km from the state capital of Raipur. The incident invited strong condemnations from PM Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel, among others.
Intelligence agencies had flagged threat letter by Maoists
A day after the blast, reports claimed that intelligence agencies had flagged a letter from Maoists in Chhattisgarh last month threatening to attack security forces as retaliation for the ongoing anti-Naxal operations. Central intelligence services had allegedly informed the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and the state police that Maoists were plotting IED ambushes/strikes against military personnel in Bijapur, Sukma, and Dantewada districts.
