Maoist rebels attacked a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) camp and blew up a railway station in Jharkhand a few hours before the second phase parliamentary poll began on Thursday, police said. In West Singhbhum district, Maoist rebels attacked a CRPF camp early on Thursday. A gun battle between the militants and security personnel was still on, officials said.

The guerrillas blew up the Chiyanki railway station in Palamau district late on Wednesday. They also bombed the outer cabin of the railway station. The cabin man and porter have been missing since the attack.

Police said the Maoist rebels also triggered an explosion on the road between Giridih and Dumri and cut trees to block it early on Thursday.

On Wednesday, the Maoists had hijacked a passenger train in Lathear district. They released it more than four hours later.

The outlawed Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) has called for a boycott of the polls.

The second phase of polling was underway in eight Lok Sabha constituencies on Thursday. Of the eight, six seats are in Maoist affected areas.

In first phase of polling April 16, nine people, including six Border Security Force (BSF) personnel, were killed in Maoist violence Jharkhand.

Also read: Timeline of Maoist attacks in April 2009  
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