Bijapur, Mar 20: In a fresh offensive against Naxals, security forces killed at least 22 members of the banned CPI (Maoists) in two separate encounters in Chhattisgarh’s Bastar region on Thursday, officials said.
While 18 Naxalites were killed in Bijapur district, four Maoists were gunned down in Kanker by a joint team of the BSF and DRG personnel of the state police.
A police jawan was also killed in the encounter in Bijapur, the officials said.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah said the security forces have achieved another big success in its march to make the country Naxal-free by killing 22 members of the CPI (Maoists) in Chhattisgarh.
“The Modi government is moving forward with a ruthless approach against Naxalites and is adopting a zero tolerance policy against those Naxalites who are not surrendering despite all the facilities being offered to them, ranging from surrender to inclusion. The country is going to be Naxal-free by March 31 next year,” Shah wrote on X in Hindi.
An official said a gunfight broke out at around 7 am in a forest along the border of Bijapur and Dantewada districts when a joint team of security personnel was out an anti-Naxalite operation in Gangaloor police station area (in Bijapur).
Bodies of 18 Naxalites along with firearms and explosives were recovered from the spot, the senior police official said.
A jawan of the state police’s District Reserve Guard (DRG) unit was also killed in the gunfight, he said.
Another encounter took place in the morning in a forest along the border of Kanker and Narayanpur districts when a joint team of the DRG and Border Security Force (BSF) was out on an anti-Naxal operation, Kanker Superintendent of Police Indira Kalyan Elesela said.
Bodies of four Naxalites and automatic weapons were recovered following the action, he said.
Search operations were underway at both the encounter sites, police said.
With the latest action, 105 Naxalites have been gunned down in separate encounters in the state so far this year. Of them, 89 were eliminated in the Bastar division comprising seven districts, including Bijapur and Kanker. (PTI)
