Ranchi: Four Maoists, including a woman, were killed in an encounter with security forces along the Chatra-Hazaribagh border in Jharkhand on Friday.
According to sources, Shahdeo Mahto, who allegedly carried a bounty of Rs 15 lakh on his head, and woman Maoist Natasha were among those killed in the encounter.
While confirming the deaths, Chatra SP Sumit Kumar Agarwal, refused to identify the dead rebels. That will be done only after a proper identification process is concluded, he said.
According to the Jharkhand Police, several weapons, including two AK-47 assault rifles, were recovered from the spot, as reported by The New Indian Express.
A joint team of Chatra Police and CoBRA commandos launched an operation based on intelligence inputs received by the Hazaribagh Police. A gunbattle soon broke out between the two sides and the four Maois
ts were killed.
“The Maoists, who got killed in the encounter, include Shahdeo Mahto, Buddhadev and woman Maoist Natasha,” a senior police official said, requesting anonymity.
The process of identifying the fourth Maoist killed in the encounter is currently underway, he added.
Mahto was reportedly passing through the Keradari forest area of Hazaribagh along with his associates. As soon as Hazaribagh Police received information about their movement, a joint operation was initiated in coordination with Chatra Police.
A team of CoBRA commandos were also deployed to enhance the effectiveness of the operation. The police team and Maoists came face-to-face as the latter crossed into the forests of Chatra from Hazaribagh.
The encounter lasted for several hours. The bodies and weapons were recovered after firing stopped. A search operation is underway.
Mahto had allegedly been active for a long time in the border regions of Chatra, Hazaribagh and Latehar, the police said. With the elimination of these four Maoists, it is believed that Hazaribagh district has been removed from the list of Maoist-affected areas.
The squad of Mahto was the last remaining active group operating in the Hazaribagh-Chatra region, officials claimed.