Top Maoist leader among 18 killed in two encounters in Chhattisgarh

The Jhiram Ghati attack had left 32 people, including state Congress leaders Mahendra Karma, Nand Kumar Patel, Uday Mudliyar and Vidya Charan Shukla, dead. “He was also the mastermind of the 2023 Aranpur IED blast in which 10 DRG jawans and a civilian driver were killed,” said an official.

Jagdish, aged around 40, has a lengthy criminal record, with a senior official claiming his involvement in over 100 killings of security personnel, civilians and politicians. He hailed from Dantewada and was a key Maoist leader for around two decades. His wife, also a Maoist, was killed in an encounter in the past, officials said.

Sukma Superintendent of Police Kiran Chawan said they received information on the presence of Maoists hiding in the dense hilly forest area around the villages of Gogunda, Nendum, and Upampalli under the jurisdiction of Kerlapal police station, around 50 kilometers from the Sukma headquarters and 20 kilometers away from the Dantewada district border.

“A joint team of the District Reserve Guard (DRG) and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) left for the operations on Friday,” said Chawan.

The encounter broke out at 8 am in the hilly area, with Maoists firing at the forces. The forces climbed the hilly region to fight back. A total of four jawans – three from DRG and one from the CRPF – suffered injuries. All four were evacuated by the Indian Air Force and admitted to the district hospital, where their condition is said to be stable.

Inspector General of police for Bastar range, Sundarraj P, said, “This operation was conducted along the Gogunda hill range, situated along the Sukma/Dantewada interdistrict border area. Negotiating tough hill terrain and dense forest cover was a major challenge for the security forces.”

“Navigating the jungle track heavily mined by Naxals was another challenge, which was tactfully negotiated by the security forces,” said Sundarraj.

After the firing ended, search operations were conducted, and the bodies of 17 Maoists, including 11 women, were found. Officials said the Maoists were holding a secret meeting when the security forces confronted them. Apart from Jagdish, six more Maoist leaders have been identified as area committee members, as well as those in charge of the farmers’ wing and the Chaitya Natya Mandal (CPM).

One more Maoist was killed in an encounter in the jungle of Tekmeta and Narsapur under jurisdiction of Basaguda police station in Sukma’s neighouring Bijapur district.

With these two encounters, a total of 134 Maoists have been killed in Chhattisgarh this year. This includes 117 from the Bastar region.