Centre sends additional forces to Bihar to rescue abducted cops

NEW DELHI/BIHAR - The Union Home Ministry on Friday dispatched another helicopter and additional paramilitary personnel to Bihar to assist the cops in locating the three policemen, who are still in the Maoists’ custody.

The Bihar Government had sought 4,000 additional paramilitary forces from the Central Government to deal with the rising Maoist violence.

It has been reported that a comprehensive plan is being worked out to launch a joint operation along the Bihar-Jharkhand border to get hold of the Naxals.

Earlier today, the body of police constable Lucas Tete was found in the Lakhisarai jungles of Bihar with a note from Naxals saying, “We have killed a hawaldar since our colleagues were not released. If our colleagues are not released we will kill other cops as well.”

A new deadline set by the Naxals for releasing the abducted cops in exchange for their jailed comrades had ended at 10 a.m. today.

The Maoists called local TV channels on Thursday to declare that one of the four policemen they had kidnapped had been killed as the state government had failed to respond.

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had on Thursday assured all support to the families of the cops taken as hostage, and police top brass have also been asked to do everything possible to get the kidnapped cops released.

Earlier on Thursday, Union Home Secretary G K Pillai said that the Bihar Government is trying its best to secure the release of the four policemen kidnapped by Maoists.

“The State government has been making all efforts to secure the release of the police personnel who have been taken hostage,” said Pillai.

“The State government is now negotiating with the Maoists and, we are extending full cooperation. We hope that there would be a successful outcome,” he added.

The four policemen - Mohammad Ehsaan, Rupesh Kumar Sinha, Abhay Prasad Yadav, Lokus Tete- were taken hostage on Sunday, during an encounter in the forests of Lakhisarai.

Seven other policemen were killed and eleven were injured in the same encounter.

The encounter began on Sunday evening when over 150 armed Maoists attacked search teams of the Bihar police combing the area following intelligence reports of the Maoists presence in the forest area. (ANI)