Amaravati: Three Maoists were killed in an encounter with the police at Rampachodavaram in the Alluri Sitharamaraju district of Andhra Pradesh on Wednesday morning.
According to the police, combing operations were underway based on intelligence inputs when contact was made. While it has been confirmed that three armed rebels have died, their bodies are yet to be recovered, an official said.
“An effort will be made to identify them after the bodies are recovered. That operation will be carried out once the area is sanitised. There is a possibility that the Maoists have laid Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) in the area. The security forces are proceeding with caution,” the official said.
“Three Maoists were killed in an exchange of fire with the police,” Amit Bardar, superintendent of police, Alluri Sitharamaraju district, told the media. He also confirmed that combing operations are underway to track down any more rebels who may be present in the area.
This incident comes a day after Maoists brutally killed three villagers in the Bijapur district of Chhattisgarh after branding them ‘police informers’. The murders took place at the Peddakorma (Nayapara) village, the police said, adding that the intention was to create fear in the minds of locals.
The three were strangled with ropes in full view of others, it has been learnt.
“The Maoists adopt such techniques whenever they are under pressure. Over the past 18-odd months, they have killed at least 87 civilians in Chhattisgarh after branding them police informers,” a police official from the state said.
