Former Jharkhand Minister Colluded With Top Maoist Leaders to Murder Rival MLA, Says NIA Chargesheet

New Delhi: The National Investigation Agency has said that top Maoist leadership of Jharkhand, including Prashanto Bose and now surrendered Maoist Kundan Pahan, were involved in the conspiracy to murder JD(U) MLA Ramesh Munda.

Munda and his two guards were gunned down in a Jharkhand school a few days ahead of the 2008 assembly election. Details of NIA chargesheet exclusively accessed by CNN-News18 claims that the Tamar MLA was murdered by Maoists at the behest of his political rival, former Jharkhand minister Gopal Krishna Patar, alias Raja Peter.

It says that the conspiracy to kill Munda was hatched in 2008 in the Birabanki Kurumba forest of Jharkhand. Raja Peter met top Maoist leaders Kundan Pahan, Prashanto Bose, Vivek Ji, Ramesh and Rajesh Santhal at this meeting and offered Rs 5 crore to kill Munda.

He also assured that if elected, he would ensure protection from police action, the NIA said. The Maoists were also upset with Munda because of his frequent outbursts against them.

“Raja Peter requested the top Maoist leadership to carry out the killing of Ramesh Singh Munda and also subsequently support him during elections. In return, Raja Peter promised to provide Rs 5 crore in cash and one AK-47 rifle and 200 rounds to the Maoists," the chargesheet says.

The NIA chargesheet claimed that post this meeting, Maoists formed a special action team comprising 8 people. Two have since died, but the other six - Tipu Burmura, Sushil Dangil, Ghaisaram Munda, Mahesh Munda and Ram Mohan Singh have been named by NIA along with Raja Peter and his two aides- Rajesh Machua and Prafull Kumar Mahanto.

Machua and Mahanto have been named for carrying the AK-47 to Kundan Pahan before the murder. NIA also said that Jharkhand Police ASI, Sheshnath Singh, was complicit in the conspiracy. A mobile phone and a slip of paper with the mobile number of Sheshnath Singh, who was a personal security officer for Munda, was given to Kundan Pahan by Raja Peter.

“On the day of murder, the Maoists contacted Singh who informed that the MLA would arrive at a school at around 1 pm. Sensing the arrival of the Maoist action team, Singh went away on pretext of answering nature's call,” the NIA chargesheet said.

“On August 9, 2018, Maoists reached SS High School, Bundu, and killed MLA Ramesh Singh Munda, his two PSOs and one school staff member,” it added. An NIA spokesperson said that total 15 people have been named in the chargesheet. “Kundan Pahan was arrested by state police in May 2017 but Prashanto Bose and Vivek Ji are still absconding," the spokesperson said.

Pahan is facing charges in various cases, including the Francis Induvar murder and beheading case while Prashanto Bose is wanted by various agencies and state police units for conspiracy and waging war against India.