Ranchi: Top Naxal commander Misir Besra, known as a face of “Red Terror” in Jharkhand’s Saranda region, who carried a reward of Rs 1.2 crore, was arrested in Dhanbad on Tuesday, police said. Two other Naxal leaders were also arrested, and three AK-47 rifles were recovered from the scene.
According to the police, Besra, active across Jharkhand, West Bengal, and Odisha for the last three decades, had been listed among the country’s ‘most wanted’ Naxals. Considered a top strategist, Besra, a native of Pirtand in Giridih district, played a pivotal role in the expansion of the Maoist organisation, operation of armed squads, and planning of major attacks. An Intelligence Bureau (IB) team had been tracking him continuously, while specialised units like CoBRA and Jaguar were searching for him in Saranda.
Police said the CRPF got Besra’s precise location when he was approaching Parasnath forests after reaching Dhanbad’s Rajganj area on way to Giridih with three associates.
Armed with precise location data and a recent photograph, security forces apprehended Besra before he could enter Giridih. The Naxal leaders arrested along with him are Mochhu alias Kismat, who carried a reward of Rs 15 lakh, and Gaurav, an associate of Besra.
A Jharkhand Police official said that had there been even a slight delay, Besra would have succeeded in reaching the forest.
Besra had served as a member of the Central Committee and the politburo of the Communist Party of India (Maoist). He played a key role in the organisation’s military and strategic decision-making, and is also credited with strengthening the outfit in Jharkhand’s Saranda, Kolhan, Parasnath and Budha Pahar, as well as in bordering regions.
As per security agencies, a bounty of Rs 1.2 crore was announced for him in Chhattisgarh. He had managed to evade security agencies while operating from the forests for a long time. He has multiple cases, including murder, attacks on police forces, explosions, extortion and arms looting, and sedition, registered against him in Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh.
Misir is the son of Darpan Besra and Rasomati Devi, residents of Madnadih in the Pirtand block of Giridih. According to police data, Misir, a resident of a remote village in Giridih district bordering Dhanbad, completed his MA from PK Roy Memorial College, Dhanbad. However, he did not receive a degree.
Prior to this, Misir graduated from Katras College in 1986. He completed his primary education at Harladih School, and his matriculation and intermediate degrees in 1980 from Rajganj High School, Dhanbad.
He was deeply influenced by Prashant Bose, alias Kishan Da, a leader of the then MCC organisation. This led him to participate in meetings of the MCC’s front organisations. In 1985, he also volunteered at the All India League for Revolutionary Culture’s second national conference in Sindri, Dhanbad district.
He took membership in 1986. Sovan Marandi, a leader of the Kisan Krantikari Committee, had initiated Misir into the organisation’s primary membership. After joining the organisation in 1986, in 1990, when Misir held a sub-zonal position, Kishan Da assigned him press duties and sent him to Kolkata (then Calcutta). Misir returned from Calcutta in 1992 and began promoting the organisation in Ranchi and the surrounding districts. He played an important role in the formation of the Jharkhand Regional Committee. Five years later, in 1997, Misir expanded the organisation, forming the Southern Chotanagpur Committee.
In 2000, he joined Kishan Da in forming the Jharkhand Regional Committee. He also formed the first armed squad in the Bundu area of Ranchi, led by an activist named Mitan.
He then became a Central Committee member in 2003. When the People’s War Group and the MCC merged in September 2004, Misir became a member of the Central Military Commission (CMC) and head of the Eastern Regional Bureau (ERB) military command.
Misir has a son who works abroad. He also had a daughter, who has passed away.
Following the arrest, an ETV Bharat team visited Misir’s village. Misir’s brother, Devi Lal Besra, explained that his brother left the village four decades ago.
Naxalite Strongholds Demolished Naxalism in Jharkhand flourished largely due to Naxals from Giridih and West Bengal. In the 1980s, Naxals established Giridih as a major operational base, subsequently producing prominent Naxal leaders and cadres from the area. More than half of the Naxals carrying bounties on the 2025 list hailed from Giridih and West Bengal. However, the arrest of Prashant Bose, who carried a Rs 1 crore bounty, marked the beginning of the crackdown on top Naxal leaders in Jharkhand, and Besra’s arrest is seen as the culmination of that process.
In early 2026, there were three Naxals in Jharkhand with a bounty of Rs 1 crore each and now the number has dropped to just one. Among the trio, Besra was arrested on Tuesday, Anal Da alias Toofan from Giridih was killed in an encounter, and Asim Mandal, alias Akash, is on the run. Akash hails from West Bengal’s Midnapore and is currently attempting to flee to Bengal via the Dalma forests.
During the last 14 years, Jharkhand Police consistently gained the upper hand over the Naxalites, and now, with Besra’s arrest, it can be said that Naxalism has been eliminated from Saranda.
Dalma is now the only area where Naxalites remain active, but their numbers are very few. The Jharkhand Police have consistently defeated the Maoists over the past 14 years. A total of 34 Naxalites, including eight carrying rewards of Rs 1 crore, were killed in encounters in 2025, and 22 have been eliminated so far in 2026.
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