Bokaro, Aug. 19: Two officers-in charge of Nawadih and Gandhi Nagar police stations were suspended today for their inability to act in time to prevent the July 24 Maoist attack on CCL's Khas Mahal colliery in Bermo in which 24 coal dumpers were set ablaze.

North Chotanagpur zonal IG Tadasha Mishra's suspension order against Anand Kumar Jha (Nawadih) and Ramesh Kumar Singh (Gandhi Nagar) comes more than three weeks after four senior police officers were served showcause notices and then transferred for the carnage that targeted the dumpers belonging to the coal transportation company of BJP's Giridih MP Ravindra Pandey.

Mishra, sources said, suspended the OCs as she wasn't satisfied with their replies to a show cause notice, asking them why they did not launch a two-pronged counter attack.

Also, the OCs, sources added, apparently ignored phone calls and text messages from senior police officers while the pre-dawn arson attack was in progress.

Mishra sent a confidential report to state DGP D.K. Pandey in which she blamed then SP A.Vijaylaxmi, Bermo ASP Rajendra Toppo, inspector Shailendra Singh and inspector R.P Singh for not acting promptly during the attack. All four were transferred out of Bokaro two days later.

In her confidential report, the IG pointed out that a few days prior to the attack at Khas Mahal, CID and IB had informed the Bokaro SP and Bermo ASP that Maoists were holding regular meetings in the villages of Bermo under the leadership of Mithilesh Mahto, alias Duryodhan.

However, the police did not act on that intelligence.