Chhattisgarh: 7 Maoists killed in gunfight, 7 weapons seized, say police
- In Reports
- 11:01 PM, May 23, 2024
- Myind Staff
At least seven Maoists were killed in a gunfight in a forest near Chhattisgarh’s Narayanpur district on Thursday during a joint operation conducted by security forces and police from Narayanpur, Bastar, and Dantewada, according to officials familiar with the situation.
The police also confiscated seven weapons and other materials from the scene, officials reported, adding that the encounter was still ongoing until late evening. The identities of the Maoists are yet to be determined.
According to a statement from the Narayanpur police, the gunfight started around 11 am in the forest along the borders of the Bijapur and Narayanpur districts. Approximately 1,000 security personnel from Bastar, Narayanpur and Dantewada were involved in the operation.
“A joint team of the District Reserve Guard (DRG) of Narayanpur, Bastar and Dantewada and Special Task Force (STF) was out on an anti-Naxal operation on Wednesday night after specific input of Maoists leaders of Platoon number 16 of CPI (Maoist) and members of Indrawati Area Committee. At around 11am on Thursday, an exchange of fire started. After the exchange of fire stopped, bodies of two Maoists were recovered by Narayanpur police”, the statement reads.
The operation is being conducted in the Abujhmaad forest, located at the tri-junction of Narayanpur, Bastar, and Dantewada districts.
“Two bodies were recovered by the Narayanpur police in the morning, while in the evening, Dantewada police, led by deputy superintendent of police (DSP) Rahul Uike and DSP Ashish Netam, recovered five bodies. Five weapons were also seized, but the grade of weapons is yet to be ascertained”, Rai said. Two weapons were seized by the Narayanpur police.
Abujmaad spans the border between Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh and is commonly referred to as the 'Unknown Hill' because its 6,000 square kilometres of dense forest have not been surveyed since the British era.
The forest is the epicentre of Maoist activities, with around a dozen senior cadres of the Communist Party of India (Maoist) reportedly still camping there, according to officials.
With the current encounter, 112 Maoists have been killed in various clashes with security forces and state police this year, significantly higher than in 2023, when only 22 Maoists were killed.
Image source: Hindustan Times
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