Top Maoist Commander Manish Yadav Killed in Jharkhand Encounter

Latehar — Senior CPI (Maoist) commander Manish Yadav, who carried a bounty of Rs 5 lakh, was killed in a fierce encounter with police and security forces in the dense forests of Latehar district in Jharkhand, officials confirmed on Monday.

Another high-ranking Maoist, Kundan Kharwar, who had a Rs 10 lakh reward on his head, was arrested during the same operation.

The encounter occurred in the Dauna and Karamkhar forest area, under the jurisdiction of Netarhat police station, and lasted from late Sunday night into the early hours of Monday.

According to Latehar SP Kumar Gaurav, the police had received credible intelligence regarding the movement of armed Maoist squads in the area. Acting swiftly, a joint team of district police and central security forces launched a search and combing operation.

As the team advanced through the forest, they came under fire from the Maoists. The forces responded promptly, resulting in a heavy exchange of fire that went on intermittently for nearly three hours.

After the gunfire subsided, the body of a slain Maoist was recovered and later identified as Manish Yadav. During further combing, Kundan Kharwar was captured, and multiple weapons were recovered from the site.

Police believe the Maoist group had assembled in the area to plan a major strike.

This marks the second significant breakthrough for Latehar police in their intensified anti-Maoist operations in just three days.

On May 24, two other Maoists — Pappu Lohara (carrying a Rs 10 lakh bounty) and Prabhat Lohara (Rs 5 lakh bounty) — were gunned down in an encounter in the Ichwar forest. Another rebel was captured with injuries. All were reportedly linked to the banned outfit Jharkhand Sangharsh Mukti Morcha.

Earlier, on April 21, security forces killed eight Maoists, including commander Prayag Manjhi — who had a reward of Rs 1 crore — in a major encounter in the Lugu Hills of Bokaro district.

With inputs from IANS