DANTEWADA (Chhattisgarh), Jan 5: Four Naxalites were killed in an encounter with security forces in Chhattisgarh’s Bastar region, a senior police official said on Sunday.
A head constable of the District Reserve Guard (DRG) was also killed in the face-off, he said.
The gunfight broke out on Saturday evening at a forest in south Abujhmaad along the border of Narayanpur and Dantewada districts when a joint team of the DRG and Special Task Force (STF) was out on an anti-Naxalite operation, the official said.
After the exchange of fire stopped late Saturday night, bodies of four Naxalites and automatic weapons, including AK-47 rifle and self loading rifle (SLR), were recovered from the spot, he said.
DRG head constable Sannu Karam was also killed in the gunfight, the official said, adding that search operation was still underway in the area.
The anti-Naxalite operation, comprising the DRG teams from Narayanpur, Dantewada, Kondagaon and Bastar districts, was launched on Friday.
Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai on Sunday said the fight will continue to end the Naxal menace.
“So far, there is news of four Naxalites being killed in an encounter between security forces and Naxalites in the south Abujhmaad region bordering Narayanpur and Dantewada districts,” Sai said in a post on X.
The chief minister expressed grief over the policeman’s death in the gunfight.
“DRG head constable Sannu Karam was also martyred in the encounter. His sacrifice will not go in vain. Security forces have been fighting very strongly against Naxalism and the fight will continue till the menace is eliminated,” he said.
On January 3, a Naxalite was killed in an encounter with security forces in Chhattisgarh’s Gariaband district, which falls in Raipur division.
Last year, 219 Naxalites were neutralised by security forces in separate encounters in the state, according to police.
The state’s Bastar region comprises seven districts, including Dantewada and Narayanpur. (PTI)
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