Security of IAS officer tightened to abort abduction plot

MEDININAGAR: The security of Latehar Deputy Commissioner Aradhana Patnaik has been tightened following recovery of a 'letter' unravelling a plot to abduct the IAS officer by Maoists, police said today.

The letter and a country-made pistol were found during search of a hotel room in the Palamau district headquarters town of Medininagar yesterday, Inspector General of Police (Zonal) M S Bhatia told reporters here.

Following a tip-off that some Maoists had checked in the hotel, a raid was conducted and it was found that four men had stayed there for two days, but none was found.

However, a search in the room had yielded the 'letter' stating the plan to abduct Patnaik and bargain her release in exchange of some hardcore rebels lodged in the Palamau jail.

"The security of Patnaik has been increased and police alerted in Latehar district's Barwadih, Garu and Mahuadand blocks," Bhatia said.

Patnaik was the first DC of Latehar in years to visit the remotest part of the Maoist-affected Latehar district to reach out the tribals with government welfare schemes.

She is the architect in planning the 'Saryu Action Plan', mooted by Union Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh to uplift the Maoist-affected villages in Latehar's Garu block.