Explosives seized from Kathikund

Dumka: Security forces on Friday seized a large consignment of explosives , including can bombs, for the fourth time in one month from Kathikund police station area and bordering parts of Shikaripara police station area.

Dumka superintendent of police Y S Ramesh said, “The explosive materials were kept buried along different locations of the operational areas.

This suggests that their heinous design was to go off during the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.” He has also launched a major sanitisation drive against rebels in areas believed to be the criminals’ den.

“Intelligence sources has asked us to keep a close watch on rebels and their sympathisers have been strengthened,” Ramesh said.

It may be mentioned that during the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, other parts of the state witnessed zero Maoist activities, however, it wasn’t the case in Dumka. The rebels had triggered can bombs and resorted to indiscriminate firing on a bus carrying a polling party at Shikaripara area in the district. Altogether five police officers and three polling staff were killed in the ambush in Shikaripara when they were returning to the base camp after conducting the poll.

The incident was largely attributed to the inadequate precautionary measures in the sensitive pockets, including insufficient deployment of paramilitary forces. This time security measures to thwart any such attempts have been intensified even before the formal issuance of notification by the election commission.