According to reports, 20 Naxals were killed in a combing operation by security personnel in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district on Sunday. ANI tweeted that according to the Inspector General of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), nearly 350 jawans participated in the operation.
It was also the first time that the security forces saw Maoists in the guise of Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (COBRA) personnel.
ANI also tweeted on Tuesday evening that in a joint operation by the COBRA and District Reserve Group, 8 Maoists were arrested in Sukma district’s Chintalnar and Chintagufa regions. These areas have borne the brunt of many of the recent Maoists attacks.
A report by IANS claims that officials stated that one policeman was killed and two others, Raju Kudmul and S Suresh Madkal, were injured in Sunday’s Bijapur encounter.
The report also claimed that the patrol group was ambushed by the Maoists again on their way back, injuring Salad Upadhyay, a police officer from Uttar Pradesh.
As it was very late in the night, a helicopter was not available. On Monday morning, Indian Air Force helicopter M-17 was landed in Bihad area. While the three injured policemen were on their way for treatment in Raipur, Upadhyay passed away.KL Dhruv, Bijapur Superintendent of Police to IANS
This anti-naxal operation is being widely speculated as successful, although exact figures as to the arrests and death toll are yet to emerge. This comes a little short of a month after the Maoist ambush in Sukma, that killed 25 CRPF jawans, and caught the nation’s imagination.
Recently, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh proposed an aggressive anti-naxal stance in the “Mission Sukma” meeting on 8 May, where the use of aerial assistance in these operations was strongly suggested.
(With inputs from ANI, IANS and The Financial Express)
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)