One dies in Purulia crossfire,ASI hurt

A man was killed and one assistant sub-inspector of Arsha police station was injured in a crossfire between the Maoists and the police on early Saturday. The incident happened after police raided Bekor forest area in Purulia following the abduction of two residents of Jhalda area by the ultras in Purulia on July 14.

According to sources,on July 14,a group of armed Maoists cadres abducted Lakkhikanta Mahato,husband of Menoka Mahato,sabhadhipati of Jhalda Panchayat Samity late at night. While returning,the group also abducted Birsha Mahato,an NGO worker of the area. On July 15,the Maoists released the two after getting ransom amount from the family members. When police reached the spot,the abductors fired on them. This led to two-hour-long crossfire in which one abductor,Aswini Mahato,was killed and one ASI was injured.

A senior police official said the ASI has been admitted to Ranchi hospital. “Aswini’s body has been sent for an autopsy to find out if he was hit by police bullet or bullets from the ultras,” he said.