Maoists kill clerk, set 2 vehicles on fire in Jharkhand, extortion bid likely

The incident took place on Tuesday evening and the police recovered the body of the clerk on Wednesday morning .

Maoists killed a clerk of a private bridge construction company and set two vehicles engaged in construction work on fire in Peshrar block of Jharkhand’s Lohardaga district, police said on Wednesday.

Jharkhand is one of the worst left wing extremism affected states. The incidents have continued unabated in the past months. (File Photo)

This is the second Maoist action in the past three days. On Sunday night, Maoists allegedly killed a 55-year-old villager, identified as Jagir Bhagat, accusing him of being a police informer in Mungo village under Serendag police station of the district.

The incident took place on Tuesday evening and the police recovered the body of the clerk on Wednesday morning when it rushed to the spot to investigate into the incident.

Lohardaga superintendent of police (SP), Priyanka Meena, said, “One person was killed, while two vehicles were burnt in the incident. The incident is being probed.”

The SP, however, refrained from giving details about the police action against rising Maoist activities in the district.

A bridge is being constructed over Onegada river, just around one kilometer away from the Peshrar police station, at a cost of Rs 2.5 crore. The workers engaged in the construction told police that a group of armed Maoists arrived at the worksite and set an excavator and tractor on fire. Then, the Maoists took the clerk, who was identified as Vicky Gupta, with them and shot him dead, the workers told police.

Police is suspecting levy as the reason behind the incident. A team led by sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) has been sent to the site for investigation into the matter.

Maoists’ incidents continue unabated in Jharkhand. As per the website of Jharkhand police, a total of 231 cases related to Maoists were registered in the state till September this year. With 33 cases, June registered the highest number of Maoist incidents, while 32 cases were recorded in August.