Top Maoist Misir Besra, carrying ₹1 crore-plus bounty, arrested in Jharkhand

Representational image only. File | Photo Credit: D-Keine “Banned CPI (Maoist) politburo member Misir Besra, who was carrying a bounty of more than ₹1 crore on his head and wanted in 141 cases, was arrested from Jharkhand's Dhanbad district,” police said.“The 65-year-old red rebel, a resident of Madnadih in Giridih district, was apprehended from Maniadih area under the Barwadda Police Station limits on Tuesday evening (July 28, 2026),” a senior officer said.“Besides Besra, two other Maoists, including one carrying a ₹15 lakh reward on his head, were arrested during the operation,” he said.“Besra, also known as Sagar Da and Bhaskar Da, had been associated with the banned outfit since 1980 and became a member of its central committee in 2003,” the officer said.“According to police records, he played a key role in expanding the Maoist network in Jharkhand and neighbouring States. Besra had also set up armed squads in Jharkhand,” the officer said.Reacting to the arrest, Devlal Besra, the Maoist's brother, said the family received information that he had been apprehended between 10 p.m. and 11 p.m. on Tuesday (July 28, 2026) in the border area between Dhanbad and Giridih."He has not come home since 1986-87. We have a nephew. We also had a niece, but she passed away. We had repeatedly appealed to him to return to the mainstream," Devlal Besra said.On Tuesday, 16 Maoists, including six carrying a combined bounty of ₹39 lakh, surrendered before the Jharkhand Police.Santosh Mahto alias Basudev Da alias Dilip, who was wanted in 128 cases and carrying a ₹15 lakh reward, was among the 16 red rebels.The police said the surrendered Maoists included two sub-zonal committee members and two area committee functionaries. Besra's arrest was being viewed as a major achievement in anti-Maoist operations in Jharkhand.Earlier this year, sixteen Maoists, including top leader Anal, were killed in a gunfight with security forces in West Singhbhum district. Union Home Minister Amit Shah had then termed the operation as "a major success in the campaign to make the region free of Naxals [Maoists]".In a message posted on 'X', Mr. Shah had said the "ongoing joint operation by CRPF and Jharkhand Police has achieved a major success in the campaign to make the region free of Naxals through encounters, with the neutralisation of the notorious bounty-wanted Naxal Central Committee member 'Anal alias Patiram Manjhi' worth ₹1 crore and 15 other Naxals so far".Calling Naxalism [Maoism] synonymous with fear and terror for decades, the Home Minister had said, "I once again appeal to the remaining Naxals [Maoists] to abandon the ideology that connects to violence, terror, and arms, and join the mainstream of development and trust." Published - July 29, 2026 02:46 pm IST