Gunbattle erupts between Naxals, security personnel in Jharkhand

Security forces engaged in a gunfight with Naxals belonging to the proscribed outfit People's Liberation Front of India (PLFI) in Jharkhand's West Singhbhum district on Saturday, police said. Acting on a tip-off, a joint team of the CoBRA battalion of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and the Jharkhand Police surrounded a PLFI camp in Jomtai forest in Gudri police station area, following which the gunbattle broke out, a senior police officer said.

"Though the Naxals managed to escape into the dense forest, they left behind an AK-47 assault rifle, two magazines, dozens of cartridges, 12 mobile phones and extortion pads," district Superintendent of Police, Indrajit Mahata, said. A search operation is underway in the forest, he added.