PLFI again rearing its head in Odisha? Poster in Sundargarh triggers apprehension

After a brief lull, a Maoist poster has been recovered in Sundagarh. The poster carries the name of Prem Kumar Jadav, Central Committee member of the People's Liberation Front of India (PLFI).

Earlier, the Intelligence Bureau issued an alert for four districts of Odisha bordering Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh advising the SPs to remain alert in the wake of violence by Maoists.

The districts are Koraput, Malkangiri, Sundargarh, and Keonjhar.

Meanwhile, the residents of Sundargarh district went into a panic mode after the Maoist poster mentioning to stop ‘cattle smuggling’ in the state was found affixed on a bridge wall near a private bus stand on Friday. It seems that it is an effort by the rebels to regroup.

On being informed, the police reached the spot and seized the poster. An investigation into the matter has started.

“This morning when I was going for a morning walk, I saw this poster. I suspect it to be affixed by Maoists as it was written in Hindi. After seeing this poster we are feeling scared and want the police to properly probe into the matter,” said a local resident.

“This morning we received a call regarding the Maoist poster and rushed to the spot. They warned to stop ‘cattle smuggling’ in the district through the poster. We have seized the poster and examining the CCTV footage to get to the culprit. We are taking all the adequate measures to stop Maoist movements in the state,” said police. 

It is pertinent to mention here that Sundargarh does not figure in the naxal-infected district's list as no violence has been reported in the last five years.

In 2014, the Maoists killed 6 innocent civilians suspecting them to be police informers. Later, the police took stringent action and killed six Maoists including the PLFI chief in an encounter.

After today’s incident, the Maoists have attempted to make their presence felt in the district.