Maoist with 15 cases against him killed in Sukma encounter

“He had killed two villagers in 2018 and 2022 after terming them police informers. He extorted money from five villages as well as businessmen for funding the banned CPI (Maoist) party’s activities. He was involved in four arson cases of vehicles used for development work. He threatened school students and forced them to get materials for the party,” said Sukma Superintendent of Police Kiran Chavan.

The encounter took place at around 1 pm in the forest of Bodgubli village in the jurisdiction of Arrabore police station. The spot is located near the border with Andhra Pradesh and Odisha, around 70 kilometres from the Sukma city area.

Acting on information regarding the presence of Maoists in the area, a joint operation was undertaken by District Reserve Guard (DRG), local police and two battalions of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF).

During the search operation, an encounter broke out between the security forces and around a dozen Maoists, officials said. After 15-20 minutes, the firing ended and the body of Dula was found. Dula had a reward of Rs 2 lakh on his head.

“A few more Maoists were injured, but managed to run away from the spot. We found explosive materials, a firearm and other Maoist materials from the spot,” SP Chavan said.