Inspector-General (prisons) Shailendra Bhushan on Wednesday began investigations into the escape of 15 prisoners, including eight supporters of CPI (Maoist), from Chaibasa divisional jail while they were being shifted back to the prison after having produced them in a local court.
Sources revealed that the IG was examining the credentials of the people inside the jail, who might have connived with the prisoners in their escape. The promptness shown by the jail guards supposedly put cold water on their plan killing two of the hardcore prisoners during the incident.
"As the investigations are still on, I am not in a position to disclose anything in this regard," said the jail IG. Bhushan visited the spot along with the other senior jail officials on Wednesday and took stock of the situation conducting extensive inquiry for several hours inside the jail premises.
"I am interrogating each and every jail staff who was present during the incident," added the IG. Meanwhile, authorities have decided to felicitate the two jail guards who gunned down two of the escaping prisoners on Tuesday.
Chaibasa SP N P Singh said that they have served show-cause notices to 15 of the policemen posted on the duty. "We are also probing another angle over involvement of policemen on escort duty who belong to the district police. If found guilty, we will suspend the cops," Singh said. The injured Naxals have been put back in the jail today after they were treated at the Sadar Hospital in Chaibasa.
The SP said that the three injured - Sanko Chaki, Birsingh Hiburu and Hesa Purty - had not sustained bullet injuries but sustained injuries after they fell down in the melee.
According to the SP, the prisoners who got killed on Tuesday had a dreaded history and were involved in over a dozen of Naxal-related incidents in Jharkhand and adjacent areas, and were quite active in the Saranda region.
"Tipa Das, a platoon commander of PlGA, was arrested hardly six months back from somewhere under Gua police station and was considered to be a right-hand of regional committee member Sandeepji," said the SP. Ram Vilas Tanti, on the other hand, was arrested some two years back from Jamui district of Bihar.
The eight prisoners out of 15 who succeeded to escape were Maoist supporters, though not involved in any serious Naxal activity, "except Johnson Ganjhu, an area commander, who had serious involvement in several cases". "Ganjhu too was reported to have boycotted the Maoists before being brought to the Chaibasa Jail," Singh added.
At present the Chaibasa divisional jail has 1,013 prisoners, including the undertrials where the jail's capacity is for 321 inmates only.
The police after lodging an FIR at Sadar police station have launched extensive combing operations in the area after sealing the district borders.
"We have been searching for them and expect that they will be nabbed soon," said the Chaibasa SP.
The incident took place on Tuesday when the headcount of 45 prisoners was underway after they were brought back to the jail from the court after being produced in the local court.