14 Maoists, Including Two Wanted Ultras, Killed in Separate Encounters in Chhattisgarh

Security forces killed 14 Maoists, including two wanted ultras, in separate encounters in Sukma and Bijapur districts of Chhattisgarh’s Bastar region on Saturday, officials said.

Of the total, 12 Maoists, including Mangtu, a Divisional Committee Member (DVCM), were neutralised during a fierce exchange of fire in Sukma district. In a separate incident, the bodies of two Maoist cadres, including Hunga Madkam, were recovered from the forests near Gaganpalli village in Basaguda area of Bijapur district, senior officials from the Ministry of Home Affairs said.

In Bijapur, security forces recovered one Self-Loading Rifle (SLR) and one 12-bore rifle from the encounter site, along with the bodies of the slain Maoists.

A senior police official said the Sukma encounter occurred in the southern region of the district when a team of security personnel was conducting an anti-Naxalite operation. Meanwhile, in Bijapur, the gunfight broke out around 5 am in a forested area as a team of the District Reserve Guard (DRG) was on a similar operation.

Intermittent firing was continuing in the area when last reports were received, and further details were awaited, officials added.

Chhattisgarh has witnessed intensified anti-Naxalite operations in recent years. Last year alone, 285 Maoists were killed in separate encounters with security forces across the state.

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