Five Naxals arrested in Chhattisgarh

Five Naxals, including a minor, have been arrested from Chhattisgarh's Dantewada district, a police official said on Tuesday. Acting on a specific input, a joint squad of the District Reserve Guard (DRG), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and local police launched a search operation in the forest areas of Chikpal, Badegadam, Telam and Tetam villages on Monday.

Five suspects were rounded up near Tetam village while they were trying to escape, the official said. Four of them have been identified as Rahul Markam (22), Baman Markam (19), Mangal Madvi (20) and Mangu Madvi (40), while another is a minor, he said, adding that they all were active as janmilitia members of Maoists.

They were allegedly involved in an IED (improvised explosive device) blast on January 31 near Tetam village during the recent panchayat polls, wherein a police jawan was injured, the official said. They were tasked with conducting reconnaissance on security forces, blocking roads, planting explosives and iron spikes, and spreading Maoist propaganda in the area, he said.