Naxal leader Prabhakar Rao was arrested on Sunday by security forces in Chhattisgarh's Kanker district. Prabhakar Rao alias Balmuri Narayan Rao, a Dandakaranya Special Zonal Committee Member (DKSZCM) of the banned CPI (Maoist) had bounty of Rs 25 lakh on him. As per the Inspector General of Police Sundarraj P, Rao was apprehended in the Antagarh police station area of the district, Bastar (Range). 57-year-old Naxal leader was in charge of logistic supply and a close associate of top Maoist functionaries.
Police got information about Rao's whereabouts
IPS officer shared information on Rao's arrest and said, "For the past few days, the Kanker district police had been receiving information about the activities of senior cadre Prabhakar Rao of the North Bastar Sub-Zonal Bureau of the banned Maoist organization. Acting on the information, security forces surrounded and arrested Prabhakar Rao in the Antagarh police station area on Sunday. Rao is being questioned."
Rao had close links with senior Maoist leaders
The police also informed that Prabhakar Rao had close links with senior Maoist leaders like Central Committee Member (CCM) Secretary Basava Raju, K Ramchandra Reddy alias Raju, Devji alias Kuma Dada, Kosa, Sonu, Mallaraja Reddy alias Sangram. His wife, a Divisional Committee Member Raje Kange, is in-charge of the Raoghat Area Committe
Big success for the forces
Arrest of Prabhakar Rao is a big success for the security forces as it will help in curbing Naxal activities in the region. Rao was an important cadre of the Maoist organisation of the North Bastar region.
"The senior leader joined Naxal ranks as a member in 1984. He was working for the organization for the last 40 years. He was currently in-charge of logistic supply and Mobile Political School (MOPOS) team in the North Sub-Zonal Bureau," the official informed.
"Dozens of criminal cases have been registered against Prabhakar Rao in several states, including Chhattisgarh. He has been a close associate of top Maoist leaders of Odisha, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal and Chhattisgarh. He is the cousin of Central Committee Member (CCM) Secretary Ganapati," added Sundarraj.
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(With PTI inputs)
