Raipur, PTI
At least 13 Naxalites including three women have been killed in an encounter with security forces in dense forests in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district, police said on Wednesday.
Three more bodies were found in the morning at the site of the encounter which lasted for nearly 12 hours, said an official.
CM Vishnu Deo Sai hailed the security personnel, stating that the fight against the Naxalites has been intensified since the BJP government came to power in the state last year.
As many as 46 Naxalites have been killed so far this year in separate encounters with security forces in Chhattisgarh’s Bastar region which comprises seven districts including Bijapur.
Following a tip-off about the presence of Naxalites belonging to the Peoples Liberation Guerilla Army’s (PLGA) company no 2 and platoon nos 11, 12 and 13 in the interior forest under Gangaloor police station limits, an operation was launched on Monday night, Bijapur, SP Jitendra Kumar Yadav said.
Personnel of the District Reserve Guard and Special Task Force of police, Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), and its elite unit Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (CoBRA) were involved in the operation, he said.
As the security personnel were cordoning off forests near Korcholi and Lendra villages, an exchange of fire broke out around 4.45 am on Tuesday, he said.
The gun-battle continued intermittently until 5 pm on Tuesday when the firing ceased, the SP said.
