Police hunt for Maoist killers in Bihar

Police were hunting on Saturday for dozens of Maoist guerrillas who massacred 11 men and five children in a Bihar village on Thursday midnight, triggering fears of a caste war.

Police were hunting on Saturday for dozens of Maoist guerrillas who massacred 11 men and five children in a Bihar village on Thursday midnight, triggering fears of a caste war.

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Police said they were looking for 62 people who took part in the slaughter, including 24 from the same village where the killings occurred -- Amausi in Khagaria district, about 200 km from Patna.

Additional Director General of Police Neelmani told IANS that while the identity of 37 of the culprits was known, 25 others were yet to be identified.

The killings have been blamed on the outlawed Communist Party of India-Maoist. The victims were from the Kurmi caste.

Police said they had deployed a large number of security personnel in the village and its neighbouring areas to prevent retaliation by members of the Kurmi community.

Bihar's opposition parties Saturday called for a shutdown in Khagaria to protest against the massacre.