CRPF jawan injured while defusing IED in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur

In the latest Naxal-related an incident in Chhattisgarh ahead of the next week's elections, a CRPF jawan was injured Monday while defusing an IED in Bijapur a district, the police said.

Bijapur, around 450 kms from here, is one of the eight naxal-hit districts where polling will be held during the first phase on November 12.

The incident occurred a day after a 15-kg explosive was unearthed by a joint team of Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (CoBRA)- an elite unit of the CRPF--and local police from a dirt track near Lingagiri village under Basaguda police station limits in the above district.

Bijapur Superintendent of Police Mohit Garg said a team of CRPF's 168th battalion Monday spotted the Improvised Explosive Device (IED) in the forest near Tarrem camp of the paramilitary forces under Basaguda police station limits while on the area domination exercise.

The IED exploded when the Bomb Disposal Squad (BDS) was trying to defuse it, he said, adding that the injured jawan has been identified as Head Constable N Nagaraju.

He was rushed to a local hospital from where he was shifted to Raipur for further treatment, the SP said. Chhattisgarh had recently witnessed a spate of naxal violence in Dantewada and Bijapur districts ahead of the assembly polls to be held in two phases on November 12 and 20. Ultras have called upon voters to boycott the polls.

The first phase of polls covering 18 constituencies in eight Naxal-affected districts Bastar, Kanker, Sukma, Bijapur, Dantewada, Narayanpur, Kondagaon and Rajnandgaon- will be held on November 12 and the second phase for 72 constituencies on November 20.

Counting of votes will be taken up on December 11. Two policemen and a cameraperson of Doordarshan were killed and two others were injured in a deadly Maoist attack on October 30 in Dantewada district.

Two naxals were also believed to be killed in retaliatory action by the security forces after the ambush in a forest area near Nilawaya village.

On October 27, four CRPF personnel were killed and two others were injured when Maoists blew up their bullet proof bunker vehicle in Awapalli area of Bijapur district.

The next day, a BJP leader and member of Dantewada Zila Panchayat Nandlal Mudiyami was seriously injured after ultras attacked him with sharp-edged weapons at his village Palnar in Dantwada.