Maoist gunned down near Dantewada-Bijapur border in Chhattisgarh

Dantewada, March 5:  Security forces, engaged in a fierce encounter with Maoists, have neutralised an armed insurgent in dense forest-mountain terrain along the Dantewada-Bijapur border in Chhattisgarh, police officials said on Thursday.

The Maoist was identified as Rajesh Punem, an area committee member of the Bhairamgarh group, who carried a government reward of five lakh rupees.

The body and recovered materials were safely transported back to Dantewada district headquarters following cautious tactical movement to guard against possible IEDs or further ambushes, with road opening parties and area domination measures in place, the officials said.

The operation started on March 3 after police received reliable intelligence inputs about a hidden dump of weapons and 'Naxalite' materials in the hilly area between Gumlanar, Girsapara, and Nelgoda villages under Geedam police station area.

A joint team, comprising members of the District Reserve Guard and Bastar Fighters, moved out around 12:30 pm.

While advancing through intensive searches and securing the surrounding forest, the force came under sudden heavy fire from 8 to 10 armed Maoists belonging to the Bhairamgarh Area Committee.

The Maoists, positioned in ambush, unleashed indiscriminate rounds from illegal automatic weapons in an attempt to eliminate the police party and seize their arms.

The security personnel swiftly took cover, issued warnings for surrender, and, facing continued aggression, responded with measured and precise retaliatory fire in self-defence.

The effective counteraction forced the Maoists to weaken and retreat, allowing them to slip away under cover of the thick jungle, rugged hills, and falling darkness.

A detailed search of the encounter site afterward recovered the body of a male armed Maoist along with a significant cache of arms and related items, including one SLR rifle, one INSAS rifle, one pistol with magazine, one walkie-talkie set, one SLR magazine, six live SLR rounds, one empty SLR cartridge case, three INSAS magazines, five live INSAS rounds, 18 INSAS misfire rounds, three empty INSAS cartridge cases, five live pistol rounds, one empty pistol cartridge case, and one pouch.

The entire force returned without any casualties among security personnel, marking a successful conclusion to the "anti-Naxal" operation as announced by Dantewada district police.

--IANS