Thaindian News

Ranchi, March 17 (IANS) Six villagers have been abducted in Jharkhand’s Latehar district as a fallout of the rivalry between two Maoist groups, police said Tuesday.
Over 20 members of the Tritiya Prastuti Committee (TPC) raided Lawagarh village in Latehar Monday and abducted six people, who are relatives of two commanders of the outlawed Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist), a police official said.

According to the police, those abducted are relatives of Chotu, a sub-zonal commander of CPI-Maoist, and Abhishek, an area commander of the group.

After abducting six people, the TPC members took them into the jungles. TPC members also set ablaze four houses and one tractor of villagers, saying they were CPI-Maoist supporters.

CPI-Maoist and TPC are at loggerheads in at least six districts of Jharkhand and they often abduct and kill supporters of the other group. More than 30 people have been killed in the rivalry between CPI-Maoist and TPC in the last one-and-half years.

Six Maoist groups are active in the state and they fight with each other over levy collection.

Maoist rebels are active in 18 of Jharkhand’s 24 districts. More than 1,450 people have been killed in Maoist-related violence in the last eight years.