Palamu (Jharkhand): In a significant development, security agencies have successfully apprehended Pramod Mishra, a prominent member of the Maoists' Politburo, along with his two associates. Though the time of the arrest is yet to be confirmed but sources in the security forces said that the arrest took place in the Jharkhand-Bihar border region, specifically connected to Gaya in Bihar.
Mishra, a notable figure in the Maoist movement, had a one crore bounty on his head in Jharkhand. Multiple security agencies are currently interrogating him. Until a few months ago, he was reportedly located in the Saranda area. Sources in the police said that Mishra who was arrested from Jharkhand-Bihar border, was engaged in a race for leadership as the head of the Maoist Eastern Regional Bureau, which oversees states like Jharkhand, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, and the North East. Saranda in Jharkhand serves as the headquarters for this bureau.
The arrest unfolds against the backdrop of a power struggle between Maoists' Politburo members Misir Besra and Pramod Mishra regarding the leadership of the Eastern Regional Bureau. Considered to be one of the most prominent leaders in Maoist rank and file, Mishra was selected as a Politburo member and became designated in charge of Delhi operations in the 9th Party Congress in 2007. He was responsible for orchestrating over two dozen Naxal attacks in Jharkhand and Bihar.
Hailing from a village in Aurangabad, Bihar, Mishra had been a prominent leader of the former Naxalite group Maoist Communist Centre of India. Following the formation of the CPI (Maoist) in 2004, he ascended to the Central Committee of the Party. Operating under aliases like "Bibiji," "Agni," and "Ban Bihari," he orchestrated a significant land movement in Bihar after Kanai Chatterjee's demise.
Mishra was instrumental in expanding the Maoist movement's reach into North India, including Haryana, Punjab, and even Jammu and Kashmir. His name also appeared in the United States Department's Country Reports on Terrorism for the year 2006. Previously arrested by the Special Task Force of Bihar Police in May 2008 from a rented residence in Barmasia, he was released in August 2017 due to insufficient evidence. Subsequently, he assumed the role of an Ayurveda doctor in a village under the Kasma police station. However, two months after his release, he mysteriously went missing, until his recent apprehension by security forces.
Mishra was particularly focused on bolstering Maoist activities in the Chhakarbandha area along the Jharkhand-Bihar border. In June 2022, security forces reclaimed the Chhakarbandha region. During this period, reports emerged that Mishra had retreated to the Saranda area. He also stands accused of masterminding various Naxalite attacks in Saranda.
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