Chhattisgarh: Naxal gunned down in encounter with police
A Naxal was gunned down in an encounter with the police in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district, an official said on Thursday. The skirmish took place on Wednesday evening in a forest near the Itampara village of the district when a team of the District Reserve Guard (DRG) was out on an anti-Naxal operation, said Bijapur's Superintendent of Police (SP) Mohit Garg.
Police personnel were cordoning off the area during the attack
DRG personnel were cordoning off the forest area near Itampara, located around 450km from the state capital, when a group of Naxals started firing on them, leading to a gun battle, he said. After the guns fell silent, the policemen had to take a tactical position and stay in the forest during the night due to rain and strong winds, the SP said.
The Naxal's body was found today morning
Early this morning, when the security men searched the area, they found the body of a Naxal, identified as Mangu Oyam (22), who was the banned outfit's jan-militia member, SP Garg said.
Police seized rifles and explosive devices from the area
The police also seized from the spot a .315 bore pistol, its 10 live rounds, an INSAS rifle magazine with four live rounds, an improvised explosive device (IED) of about 2 kg, a couple of detonators, cordex wire, battery, and other Maoist material, Garg said. The patrolling team returned today to its camp in Bijapur after concluding the operation, he added.
