CRPF jawan killed, another injured in gun battle with Maoists

A CRPF jawan was killed and another injured in a gun battle with Maoists in Chhattisgarh’s worst insurgency-hit Sukma district, police said on Monday.

A CRPF jawan was killed and another injured in a gun battle with Maoists in Chhattisgarh’s worst insurgency-hit Sukma district, police said on Monday.

The skirmish took place on Sunday in forests under Maraguda police station limits while the paramilitary forces were out on an anti-Maoist operation in the region, Sukam additional superintendent of police Santosh Singh told PTI.

A squad of Central Reserve Paramilitary Force’s 217th battalion had launched the operation late last evening acting on an information about digging of a road by ultras near its Maraiguda camp, located around 450 kms away from the state capital, Singh said.

During patrolling, a group of armed cadres opened indiscriminate firing on security personnel leaving one of them dead and another injured, he said. However, Maoists fled to the core forests when jawans retaliated, he added.

“The killed jawan was identified as Ashok Kumar Jat of constable rank,” the ASP said. Soon after getting the news, additional forces were rushed to the spot. Both the deceased and injured jawan were retrieved out from the forest through helicopter, he said.

A manhunt has been launched in the region to nab the attackers, he added.