10 Naxalites killed in encounter in Chhattisgarh; second success for security forces in two weeks

PTI

Narayanpur/Raipur, April 30

Ten Naxalites including three women were killed in an encounter with security forces on the border of Narayanpur and Kanker districts of Chhattisgarh on Tuesday morning, state police said.

This was a second major blow to the Naxalites within 15 days. The site of Tuesday's encounter was 30 km south of Kalper village in Kanker where 29 Naxalites were killed in a gunfight with security forces on April 16, a senior police official said.

Two of the killed cadres were prima facie identified as Joganna and Vinay alias Ashok, both `divisional committee members' of Maoists, he said.

Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai said his government was fighting strongly against Naxalism, while deputy CM and home minister Vijay Sharma termed the operation as a major success and also appealed to the Naxalites to come forward for talks and give up the path of violence.

The encounter took place around 6 am in the forest between Tekmeta and Kakur villages in Abhujmad area, a Naxalite stronghold, when a joint team of security personnel was out on an anti-Naxal operation, and lasted for four hours, said Inspector General of Police, Bastar Range, Sundarraj P.

The operation was launched by the District Reserve Guard and Special Task Force, both units of the state police, from Narayanpur on Monday night based on inputs about the presence of 'politburo' member Sonu, Joganna, Vinay alias Ashok and other cadres of the north Bastar, Maad and Gadchiroli (Maharashtra) divisions of the Maoists, he said.

After the guns fell silent, a search operation was launched and till evening, the bodies of 10 Naxalites including three women had been recovered, he said.

The process of ascertaining identities of the killed Naxalites was under way but two of them were prima facie identified as Gadchiroli division committee members Joganna and Vinay, Sundarraj said. 

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