Naxals torch bus in Chhattisgarh after asking passengers to alight

Raipur, June 8

Naxals torched a bus in Bijapur district of Chhattisgarh, after asking the passengers to alight, police said on Saturday.

The incident occurred on Friday evening between Kutru and Farsegarh villages when the private passenger bus was on its way to Bedre from Bijapur town, a senior police official said.

Around a dozen Maoists, some of them armed, stopped the bus belonging to Jai Bhawani Travels, and set it ablaze after allowing passengers to get off, he said.

None of the passengers or crew was harmed. However, the bus was completely damaged, the official added.

Security forces have rushed to the spot and combing operations to apprehend the Naxals involved in the incident were under way, he said.

As Maoists are observing ‘Jan Pituri’ week from June 5, vigil in Bastar region had been stepped up, the official said.

Bastar division comprises seven districts--Dantewada, Bijapur, Bastar, Narayanpur, Kondagaon, Sukma and Kanker.

The outlawed Communist Party of India (Maoist) observes ‘Jan Pituri’ week every year in memory of their slain leaders. During this period, which generally coincided with the arrival of monsoon, Maoists focused on recruitment of fresh cadres by spreading their propaganda, he said. PTI