Four Maoist rebels shot down in Raipur

Police said on Sunday they had shot dead four Maoist rebels after a gunbattle in Chhattisgarh.

Police said on Sunday they had shot dead four Maoist rebels after a gunbattle in the insurgency-hit central Indian state of Chhattisgarh.

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Six Maoist rebels were also arrested and a stash of weapons was recovered after the encounter in the state's worst-affected Dantewada district, about 500 kilometers (310 miles) from the state capital Raipur, police said.

The encounter was sparked when security forces raided a rebel hideout, senior local police official TJ Lonkumer told.

More than 300 people, including security personnel, have been killed in Maoist-related violence in the state since January this year.

The guerrillas, who say are fighting for the rights of neglected tribes and landless farmers, also hold sway in states such as Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and Orissa.