Bokaro: The bodies of eight Maoists have been recovered after an exchange of fire between the rebels and elite CoBRA commandos of the CRPF at Lugu Hills in the Lalpania region of Jharkhand’s Bokaro. More Maoists may have been killed in the encounter that started around 5 am on Monday.
A team of CoBRA commandos from the 209 Battalion and local police were out on patrol when they came under fire from the Naxalites, an official said. The security forces returned fire and the encounter continued for some time. After firing from the rebels’ side ceased, a search operation was launched.
Apart from the eight bodies, a large number of weapons and ammunition were found at the spot. These included an AK-47 and several INSAS rifles. This indicates the presence of top leadership in the area, before the encounter started. The bodies are yet to be identified.
“Combing operations are underway and the possibility of the recovery of more bodies and weapons remain. We are happy that no injuries were suffered by our security personnel, despite a well laid-out ambush by the Maoists,” a senior police official said.
A Jharkhand Jaguar constable was killed earlier this month in an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) blast orchestrated by the Maoists in the state. Senior police officials, including DGP Anurag Gupta had then vowed to avenge the death and wipe out Left Wing Extremism from Jharkhand.
The weapons recovered on Monday included an AK-47 rifle, a Self-Loading Rifle (SLR), three INSAS rifles, a pistol, and eight country-made Bharmar rifles.
