In a bid to flush out the People’s liberation Front of India (PlFI) rebels from Khunti and its adjoining districts, state police is carrying out Operation Karo for the last six days with 14 battalions of CRPF and Jharkhand Jaguar along with the State police force.
The Government this time has planned a frontal, all round attack and restores a sense of safety and security among the masses. “Operation Karo is being conducted in the bordering districts of State, cordoning off area in order to check their movements to the adjoining districts and nab them dead or alive,” said IG (Ranchi Zone) MS Bhatia.
Presently the operation is being conducted at the bordering areas of Ranchi, Gumla, Simdega and Chaibasa districts along with the borders of Khunti which is infamous as the worst left Wing Extremism (lWE) affected district in the State. Adjoining districts like Gumla, Simdega along with the bordering districts of Chattisgarh have also been alerted by the police force.
Sources also confirmed that MI-16 choppers may also be deployed during the final call given to the rebels for airdropping the security forces to the far reaching remote areas of the dense jungles to finish the decade old menace from the area. “Since the operation is being conducted round the clock, we are also looking at the feasibility of using MI 16 choppers for airdropping the security forces in the remote jungles of Khunti,” Bhatia added.
According to the police sources, phase wise operations will be conducted for 20 days after which the security forces will be given a time to take a halt for another operation, until the group is wiped out completely from the area.A Special Task Team (STT) has also been formed under the Khunti SP to chase the self styled leader of the group Dinesh Gope, to be provided the required intelligence inputs and logistic support from the agencies along with sophisticated weapons for close combat.
Special focus will be given on the supporters and sympathizers of the group and will be arrested under relevant sections of law. “The ongoing operations will definitely bring out better results in the near future,” said Khunti SP Anis Gupta. State Police, after getting inputs about the movements of PlFI chief Dinesh Gope in the area, launched ‘Operation Karo’ in order to flush out the rebels from the area. like Kundan Pahan of the CPI (Maoist), Dinesh Gope of PlFI is also hoodwinking the police for years.
To build an all round pressure on the group, Income Tax officials will also be asked to inquire about the movable and immovable property of the PlFI cadres and their supporters to be identified by the police and confiscated by the state under relevant provisions of law, if no justification regarding the source of its acquisition is given by them.
A massive campaign against the PlFI will also be launched by the Public Relation Department bringing their photographs and other identities in the public domain with cash rewards announced on the senior cadres of the group.Police officers actively contributing to the neutralization, of the PlFI chief Dinesh Gope - dead or alive, will be awarded Gallantry awards and will also be considered for out of turn promotion to him.
PlFI area commander Shankar Gope along with the five others was arrested from different places in the district on Sunday during the operation. Gope was wanted in more than 23 cases including murder, extortion and kidnapping.
These rebels were allegedly involved in issuing the ‘dictat’ following which over 400 schools in the district remained closed for over a week.Taking a serious note of the situation, Chief Secretary Sajal Chakraverty asked the district administration to deal with them so that the rebels do not dare such things in future.
Chakraverty branding the PlFI cadres as mere criminals without having any agenda has earlier directed Khunti SP to finish them after giving them a final warning to surrender.Intelligence inputs suggest that there are merely a handful of PlFI cadres not more than 60 in numbers, are enjoying support of the rural population by creating a sense of fear psychosis among them.