Chhattisgarh Encounter: Top Maoist Leaders Among 10 Naxalites Gunned Down in Fierce Gunfight

A fierce encounter took place between security forces and Maoists in Chhattisgarh’s Gariaband district on Thursday, in which eight to ten Naxalites, including two important leaders of the Central Committee of the CPI (Maoist), were killed. Among the dead are Odisha State Committee member Pramod alias Pandu and senior Central Committee member Modem Balakrishna alias Manoj. Balakrishna is said to be a native of Bhopalpally in the erstwhile Warangal district of Telangana.

According to the police, the encounter occurred in the Bhalu Digi forests under the Mainpur police station limits of Gariaband when the Special Task Force (STF) and the Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (COBRA) of the CRPF launched a search operation based on a tip-off. Intermittent firing continued since morning, during which the Maoists suffered heavy casualties.

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Raipur Range IG Police Amrish Mishra told the media that this encounter is a major setback for the Maoist organization, as several high-ranking leaders were among those killed.

Meanwhile, in another incident in Dantewada district, Inspector Diwan Singh Gujjar and Constable Alam Manish of the CRPF’s 195th Battalion were seriously injured in an IED blast. The incident occurred during a search operation between Sathar and Maliwahi when the personnel accidentally stepped on a pressure mine laid by the Maoists. The injured were immediately shifted to a hospital.

Security forces said that a large-scale search operation is still underway in the forest and the possibility of more Maoists being present cannot be ruled out.