Jharkhand Police Nab Four Maoists in Gumla Raid, Arms Cache Recovered
Four Maoists, including a sub-zonal commander carrying a bounty of ₹5 lakh on his head, were arrested in Jharkhand's Gumla district on Tuesday (August 18, 2026), according to senior police officials.
Acting on a specific tip-off, a police team conducted a raid in the Aurapat forest area under the Dumri Police Station limits and apprehended the four accused. Officials said the raid was part of an ongoing counter-insurgency operation in the region.
Jharkhand Police Inspector General (Operations) Narendra Singh identified the arrested persons as Ramdeo Lohra, a sub-zonal commander of the JJMP (Jharkhand Jan Mukti Parishad), a splinter group of the banned CPI (Maoist); Arvind Nayak, an area commander; and two other members of the outfit. Singh added that Lohra was carrying a bounty of ₹5 lakh on his head.
Gumla Superintendent of Police Haris Bin Zaman said the other two accused have been identified as Muneshwar Singh, a resident of Lohardaga district, and Jitendra Lohra of Gumla. Both Lohra and Nayak are residents of Lohardaga district, police said.
A huge cache of arms and ammunition was recovered from their possession, officials confirmed, though the exact inventory has not yet been disclosed. Forensic and ballistic examinations are expected to be conducted to determine the origin and use of the seized weapons.
The JJMP is one of several splinter factions that have emerged from the CPI (Maoist) in Jharkhand over the past decade. While the CPI (Maoist) remains the most prominent left-wing extremist group in central and eastern India, splinter outfits like JJMP have been linked to extortion, violence, and armed resistance against state authority. The Central and state governments have repeatedly called for a peaceful resolution to the Maoist insurgency, while security forces continue to carry out counter-insurgency operations in affected districts.
The Gumla district, part of the larger Maoist-affected region known as the Red Corridor, has witnessed periodic clashes between security forces and extremist groups. In recent years, police have intensified anti-Maoist operations, leading to several arrests and surrenders. Officials say such raids are aimed at dismantling the armed structure of these groups and restoring normalcy in the region.
The arrested individuals are expected to be produced before a local court, and further interrogation may reveal more details about the group's network and recent activities.
