Ranchi, Aug 8: Security forces in Jharkhand have shot dead a senior commander of the banned People’s Liberation Front of India (PLFI), Martin Kerketta, who was carrying a reward of ₹15 lakh, police officials said on Wednesday.
The exchange of fire took place on Tuesday evening in the Changabadi Bantoli area under Kamdara Police Station limits in Gumla district during a search operation based on intelligence inputs about militant movement.
“We received secret information that PLFI extremists were roaming the forested and hilly areas around Changabadi, Bantoli, intending to carry out a major incident,” Gumla Superintendent of Police Haris Bin Zaman told reporters.
A joint raid team was subsequently formed under the leadership of Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) Nazir Akhtar, and included personnel from Kamdara Police Station and the Quick Response Team (QRT) of Gumla district.
“In the ensuing encounter on August 5, PLFI area commander Martin Kerketta was killed in police firing carried out in self-defence,” Zaman said.
Police recovered a 5.76 MM pistol and ammunition from near the body. Several of Kerketta’s associates managed to flee the scene, the official added, saying further action was being taken to apprehend them.
Kerketta, a high-ranking PLFI leader, was wanted in 72 criminal cases across multiple districts in Jharkhand, including 30 in Gumla, 17 in Khunti, 11 in Ranchi, and others in Simdega, Chaibasa, Hazaribagh, and Chatra. The charges span offences under the Criminal Law Amendment Act and the Arms Act, according to police records.
The PLFI, a splinter group of the CPI (Maoist), is designated a terrorist organisation and has been active in parts of eastern India, particularly Jharkhand, where it is involved in extortion, armed attacks, and disrupting infrastructure projects.
