Ranchi | In a breakthrough in anti-Naxal operations, banned CPI (Maoist) politburo member Misir Besra, carrying a bounty of over Rs 2.2 crore and wanted in 175 cases, was arrested from Jharkhand's Dhanbad district, DGP Tadasha Mishra said on Wednesday.

The DGP claimed that the Maoist menace had been "almost wiped out" from the state with the arrest of the country's most wanted Naxal leader.

Besra, 65, was apprehended from the Maniadih area within Barwadda police station limits on Tuesday evening during Operation Daura Pahad, she said.

A resident of Madnadih village in Giridih district, Besra was the "only active top-ranking CPI (Maoist) politburo member", the DGP said.

"The top Maoist was carrying a combined bounty of Rs 2.20 crore, announced by the Jharkhand and Odisha governments. He was wanted in 175 cases across Jharkhand, Odisha and West Bengal," the officer said.

Two other Maoists - Mehnat alias Mochu, who was carrying a reward of Rs 15 lakh, and Gaurav - were also arrested during the operation, she said.

According to the DGP, the three were wanted in a total of 320 criminal cases.

Police said Besra, also known as Sagar Da and Bhaskar Da, joined the banned outfit in 1980 and rose through its ranks to become a member of its central committee in 2003.

He played a key role in expanding the Maoist network in Jharkhand and neighbouring states, another officer said.

Besra was instrumental in forming armed squads in the state, he said.

Jharkhand Police Inspector General (Operations) Narendra Singh said the three arrested Maoists were involved in several major attacks over the years, including the 2005 Jehanabad jailbreak in Bihar, multiple bank robberies, large-scale looting of arms and ammunition and IED blasts.

"They were responsible for the deaths of more than 100 security personnel," he said.

Singh said the three had killed 25 security personnel within two months in 2001, including 12 CRPF personnel in the Oria-Harli forest under Churchu police station limits in Hazaribag district in September that year. They also looted arms and ammunition from the personnel, he said.

After this, the three carried out another attack in October 2001 at the Topchanchi Block, killing 13 JAP jawans.

According to police, the three red rebels had been attempting to revive Maoist activities in Parasnath region.

"Security forces will sanitise the entire area and launch intensive operations to trace the remaining 15-20 Maoists, believed to be active in Jharkhand, including three carrying cash rewards. Among the three with bounties are Asim Mandal, a central committee member of the banned CPI (Maoist), who carries a reward of Rs 1 crore, Saluka Kayam, who carries a bounty of Rs 10 lakh, and Manohar Ganjhu, who has a reward of Rs 15 lakh," Singh said.

Security forces seized 3 AK-47 rifles, 8 magazines and 288 cartridges from the three arrested rebels. Besides, officials said they also arrested two of their associates from Dhanbad district.

In total, 44 Maoists have surrendered to security forces in the state, and seven have been arrested over the last three months.

Reacting to Misir Besra's arrest, his brother Devlal Besra said the family came to know that he had been apprehended between 10 pm and 11 pm on Tuesday in the border area between Dhanbad and Giridih.

"He has not come home since 1986-87. We have a nephew. We also had a niece, but she passed away. We had repeatedly appealed to him to return to the mainstream," Devlal Besra said.

The arrests came hours after 16 Maoists, including six carrying a combined bounty of Rs 39 lakh, surrendered before the Jharkhand Police on Tuesday.

Santosh Mahto alias Basudev Da alias Dilip, who was wanted in 128 cases and carrying a reward of Rs 15 lakh, was among those who surrendered.

Police said the surrendered Maoists included two sub-zonal committee members and two area committee functionaries.

The latest operation is being seen as a major success in the Centre's and the state's sustained campaign against Left Wing Extremism.

Earlier this year, 16 Maoists, including senior leader Anal alias Patiram Manjhi, were killed in an encounter with security forces in West Singhbhum district.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah had termed the operation a significant milestone in the mission to make the region free of Naxalism and had appealed to remaining Maoist cadres to shun violence and join the mainstream.