Six Maoists gunned down in Kandhamal, Balangir districts of Odisha

NewsBharati    14-May-2018
Total Views |

Bhubaneswar, May 14: In separate encounters, six Maoists were killed by the police in Kandhamal and Balangir districts in the past 24 hours.

The additional director general of police R.P. Koche said four rebels, including two women cadres, were killed in a gunfight with the special operations group (SOG) jawans at Godanki village in Kandhamal Sadar police limits on Sunday afternoon.

The Maoists are yet to be identified. “We have seized eight weapons including an AK-47 and an Insas rifle. The operation is still on,” said Koche.

Acting on a tip-off, an operation was launched by police and Special Operation Group (SOG) personnel in Sudukumpa forest of Kandhamal.

During the operation, the Maoists, who were holding a meeting there, opened fire at the security personnel who retaliated, the police said.

In Balangir district, two Maoists, carrying a total bounty of Rs 9 lakh on their heads, were gunned down by security forces.

Acting on information, a team of CRPF and District Voluntary Force (DVF) officials carried out an operation in the forest areas near Dudkamal village of the district around 1.30 am, a senior police officer said.

“We had information that around a dozen left-wing extremists (LWE) had assembled at a hideout near Dudkamal village. When the security personnel approached the site, a fierce gun battle broke out between the two sides, resulting in the death of two rebels. The rest managed to flee taking advantage of the darkness,” Balangir SP K Siba Subramani said.

The killed extremists were identified as CPI (Maoist) members Sanjib and Rakesh. Both hailed from Chhattisgarh, he said.

“Sanjib, a divisional committee member, carried a reward of Rs 5 lakh over his head, while the bounty amount for Rakesh, an area committee member of Balangi-Baragarh division, was Rs 4 lakh,” the officer said.