Two suspected commanders of Jharkhand Jan Mukti Parishad (JJMP), a splinter group of the outlawed Communist Party of India (Maoists), were killed on Friday, police said.
Police said that a fight broke out among the Naxals over possession of AK 47 and money collected as the levy in which two commanders were killed.
The deceased ultras were identified as Ganesh Lohra (35) a zonal commander of the outfit and Santosh Yadav (32). Lohra carried a cash award of Rs.5 lakh on his head, police said.
The incident took place in the forest adjacent to Palamu and Latehar district borders under the Panki police station area on Friday, police said.
On getting information about the clash, the police launched a search in the area and recovered two dead bodies.
Palamu superintendent of police (SP) Reeshma Ramesan confirmed the two casualties during infighting among the cadres of the Maoists faction. “We are investigating to ascertain the reason that triggered the infight. Two ultras including one carrying a cash award of Rs.5 lakh were killed in firing,” she said.
The preliminary investigation revealed that there was a dispute among the squad members over possessing AK 47 and the distribution of the levy amount.
