A 27-year-old suspected Maoist, wanted in several cases of murder and attack on police teams and whom investigators describe as an 'ace guerrilla fighter', was arrested in the capital, police said on Thursday.
Shiv Kumar alias Shiva, a cadre of CPI (Maoist) who hails from Jharkhand's Ranchi and is an expert in handling landmines and sophisticated arms, was apprehended by Delhi Police's Crime Branch from Rohini on Wednesday and a pistol was allegedly recovered from him.
This is the second arrest of a Maoist hailing from Jharkhand in the capital in the past one month. Pradeep Kumar, a 42-year-old Maoist who was wanted in the murder of a senior police officer 12 years ago and had participated in an agitation for separate statehood for Jharkhand, was arrested in the capital on May 10. "Shiva is an expert in land mines, explosives and IED and weapon handling.
He is an ace guerrilla fighter and close associate of local area Commander in Jharkhand. He has been deeply indoctrinated on Left Wing Ideology in the Saryu Jungles of Jharkhand and heads the local guerrilla squad," DCP (Crime) Sanjay Kumar Jain said.
A senior police official said Shiva is well-versed in the theories of Karl Marx, Lenin and Mao, and is also believed to have taken part in around 200 Maoist actions against police and security forces in Jharkhand's Lohardaga and Latehar districts.
Shiva, a close associate of Ravinder - the Area Commander of Narkopi region near Ranchi, told police he joined CPI (Maoist) in 2008.