Maoist carrying Rs 3 lakh bounty held in Chhattisgarh forest

A Naxalite, carrying a cash reward of Rs 3 lakh on his head, was today arrested from a forest in Chhattisgarh's insurgency-hit Kondagaon district, police said.

Mohan Kashyap (20) was picked up from the forest between Madnar and Permpal villages under Bayanar police station limits during a search operation by a joint team of security forces, Kondgaon Additional Superintendent of Police Maheshwar Nag told PTI.

A combined squad of the District Reserve Guard (DRG) and Chhattisgarh Armed Force (CAF) had launched the operation towards Mungawal, Kejang and Madanar villages, located around 300 kms away from the state capital Raipur, he said.

Security forces spotted Kashyap between Madanar and Permapal villages when he was trying to hide in the forest, the ASP said.

Kashyap, an LOS (local organisation squad) member of Maoists, was allegedly hiding there to target security forces through an improvised explosive device (IED) and cause damage to vehicles involved in road construction works, he said.

A seven-kg tiffin bomb, an electric wire, and some naxal literature was recovered from his possession, the officer said, adding that the police are interrogating Kashyap.