Three Maoists, including Ajay Yadav, carrying a reward of ` 5 lakh on his head, were killed in a gun battle with Tritiya Prastuti Committee (TPC) cadres at Seeta Chuan under Mohammedganj Police Station in Palamau on Friday. Huge cache of arms and ammunitions alongwith one AK-47 rifle was also recovered from the site.
The three bodies have been recovered. One of those killed has been identified as Ajay Yadav, on whose head the police had put a reward of ` 5 lakh, the police said. Other two bodies have been identified as of his area commanders Krishna Kharwar and Ravindra Mahto.
“Police have recovered bullet ridden bodies of Ajay Yadav, Surinder Yadav and Dhirendra from the site,” said Palamu DIG Vipul Shukla. One AK-47 rifle, one INSAS rifle, one semi automatic rifle, one 303 rifle and one 0.315 bore gun alongwith 630 live bullets, 23 magazines, 11 cell phones, several IEDs, 50 meter of Codex wire, flash and 6 back packs have also been recovered from the site, he added.
The DIG further added that one person Uday Oraon was also arrested from the site and a case has been lodged with Mohammadganj Police Station in this regard. Police, he said, conducted search operations in the contiguity of the site of violence as there were reports that those who escaped from the site sustained injuries.
The DIG apprehended that the gunbattle might have taken place due to the internal friction inside the group. “It appears that the loss of life is due to the inner fight,” he said.
Sources also said that Ajay Yadav might have been killed because of his own misdeeds as he was rash, haughty and revengeful besides being a hard core casteist and never felt shy of ranking up cadres who were yadavs.Ajay Yadav’s elder brother Amrit Yadav too was a Maoist who got killed in a police encounter some nine years back. Ajay Yadav joined extremist outfit after his brother got killed in a police encounter.
Police said that Ajay had more than two dozen cases registered against him in four police stations in Palamu. He was behind the destruction of the house of a Para teacher Birbal Ram at Gowasarey under Pandu police station last week. Ajay was also an accused of blowing up the house of Ram and also setting it on fire. He also burnt a jeep Mohammadganj in just 24 hours of his aberration.
“It appears that no encounter has taken place and this loss is caused by them,” said the DIG.