“A Naxalite was killed in an exchange of fire with security personnel in Chhattisgarh’s Sukma district on May 18,” police said.
“The gunfight took place in the morning on a forested hill between Tolnai and Tetrai villages when a team of security personnel was out on an anti-Naxal operation,” a police official said.
“The operation was launched on Friday night [May 17] based on inputs about the presence of Naxalites in the area,” he said. “After the exchange of fire stopped, the body of a Naxalite, a muzzle loading gun and a cache of explosives were recovered from the spot,” he said.
“The identity of the deceased Naxalite is yet to be ascertained,” the official said, adding that a search operation is still under way in nearby areas.
With this incident, 105 Naxalites have been killed so far this year in separate encounters with security forces in the State. On May 10, a total of 12 Naxalites were killed in an encounter with security personnel in Bijapur district.
Ten Naxalites, including three women, were killed in a similar face-off in a forest along the border of Narayanpur and Kanker districts on April 30. “On April 16, as many as 29 Naxalites were gunned down in an encounter with security forces in Kanker district,” police said.
