Hyderabad: Two Maoists were killed in an encounter with security personnel at the Telangana-Chhattisgarh border in Telangana’s Bhadradri Kothagudem district. The encounter took place in Puttapadu forest of Cherla mandal in the district. The dead reportedly include Communist Party of India (Maoist) IOS commander Rajesh.
The personnel of Telangana’s anti-Maoist force Greyhound were conducting a search operation in the forest when the Greyhounds came face-to-face with the Maoists. At first they were asked by the Greyhounds to surrender, but they did not listen and began to attack. Following this, the Greyhounds allegedly retaliated and opened fire on the Maoists.
In this encounter, two Maoists were killed on the spot, while others managed to escape deep into the forest. On the other hand, there were no reports of casualties among Greyhound personnel. Telangana police chief Anjani Kumar had warned the police force two days ago that no complacency should be shown in dealing with the Maoists. Especially in areas bordering neighboring states, where Maoists are present, they should be dealt with strictly.
Simultaneously, the Director General of Police (DGP) asked the policemen not to relax their security at all, as 10 jawans and a civilian had lost their lives recently after the Naxals planted explosives. He told the police personnel that even a small incident related to law and order in the state can have a serious impact on the development of Telangana state. Keeping this in mind, the police officers should be more alert and deal with the situation harshly.
The DGP said that in view of the assembly elections, the authorities would have to take adequate precautions in terms of security during the visits of political dignitaries and rallies being taken out by VVIPs in the state. He advised the officials to be more vigilant anticipating increased movement of Maoist action teams in the border areas of the state.
