14 of 29 Naxalites killed in Kanker encounter were from Maoists’ warfare unit: Police

Three security personnel also suffered injuries in the gun battle.Ten of the neutralised Naxalites belonged to the Madhya Pradesh-Maharashtra-Chhattisgarh MMC zonal committee, while 14 were from the PLGA Peoples Liberation Guerilla Army, which is the warfare unit of Maoists, they said.

Fourteen of the 29 Naxalites killed in the Kanker encounter in Chhattisgarh earlier this week belonged to the warfare unit of the outlawed CPI (Maoist), the police said on Saturday. The identification of the killed Naxalites is almost complete, they said.

In a major counter-insurgency operation, 29 Naxalites, including 15 women, were killed in an encounter with security personnel on April 16 near Kalpar and Hapatola villages under the Chhotebethiya police station limits in the state's Kanker district. Three security personnel also suffered injuries in the gun battle.

Ten of the neutralised Naxalites belonged to the Madhya Pradesh-Maharashtra-Chhattisgarh (MMC) zonal committee, while 14 were from the PLGA (People's Liberation Guerilla Army), which is the warfare unit of Maoists, they said. The process to identify the killed Maoists was underway for the last four days which was almost completed on Saturday, the police said in a statement.

Shankar Rao, a divisional committee member of the north Bastar division committee of Maoists, his wife Rita, an area committee member hailing from Warangal and Adilabad districts of Telangana, and Surekha, a member of the MMC zonal committee from Maharashtra's Gadchiroli district are among the killed cadres, it said.

During the identification process, the police found that cadres from the MMC zonal committee apart from the Dandakaryna Special Zonal Committee (DKSZC) of Maoists were also present at the site during the encounter, which took place just days ahead of the first phase of the Lok Sabha polls, it said.

The police will now collect information about the offences registered against the Naxalites eliminated in the encounter, the release added.

Meanwhile, a purported press note issued by the north sub-zonal bureau of the banned organisation claimed that 12 of its colleagues were killed in the gunfight and the remaining 17 were "murdered" by security personnel who caught them either in injured or normal condition.

Maoists also released the names of all the 29 Naxalites killed in the encounter.

In protest against the encounter, Maoists have given a bandh call on April 25 in Kanker, Narayanpur and Mohla-Manpur- Ambagarh Chowki districts.

Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range) Sundarraj P rejected the Maoists' claims.

"For the first time, a large number of active and key cadres including divisional committee members, area committee members, PLGA cadres of the banned outfit were neutralised in the encounter. Out of fear and panic, a press release has been issued by Maoists with false and absurd claims," he said.

It is clear from the press release that the Maoist outfit is directionless, lacks leadership and is rapidly heading towards destruction, he said in a release.

The security forces deployed in the Bastar area will always be ready to take effective action against the Maoists to protect life and property in the area so that people can get rid of the menace, he said.

The top official appealed to Maoists to quit violence and join the mainstream for peace and development in the Bastar region.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)