A Maoist ‘zonal commander’ was lynched by villagers in Jharkhand’s West Singhbhum district, police said on Friday.
West Singhbhum Superintendent of police Michael Raj S said the lynched Maoist has been identified as Johnson Ganju, was a resident of Hazaribagh but had been operating in Saranda forest of the district for long.
Ganju allegedly went to meet his lady love in Rongo village at around 9.30 pm last night when the villagers, angry with his extortion and other misdeeds surrounded him and beat him to death with stones and bows and arrow, he said.
The Maoist had tried to repeal the attack by opening fire, which was returned by the villagers, the SP said.
Ganju was the mastermind of Chaibasa jail break in December last year in which 15 of its inmates fled and three were killed in police firing, police said.
A country-made pistol, two live cartridges, one empty cartridge and three mobile phones were recovered from his possession, he said.
Police said at least 49 cases were pending in different police stations of West Singhbhum against Ganju.
