Bhopal: Two wanted naxalites carrying a reward of Rs 12 lakh and Rs 5 lakh respectively on their heads were gunned down in an encounter by the anti-naxal paramilitary forces at MP-Chhattisgarh border in Rajnandgaon on Friday afternoon.
Inspector general of police (intelligence) Makrand Dueskar said that the two naxalites, Vinod resident of Gadchiroli Chhattisgarh, who carried a reward of Rs 12 lakh and Sagar resident of South Bastar, who carried a reward of Rs 5 lakh on his head were gunned down in the dense forests near village Bodala in a joint operation of the anti-naxal apparatus comprising Hawk Force of MP police, E-30 of Chhattisgarh police and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) at around 12.30 pm.
An automatic pistol suspected to have been looted from the security forces during a previous naxal ambush was seized. The 12-bore gun and several rounds of live cartridges have been seized from the spot. The combing operations are still underway.
Balaghat district police superintendent Amit Sanghi said that among the two gunned down naxal extremists, Vinod, a resident of Gadchiroli district of Maharashtra was the deputy commander of Platoon-55 of the CPI (Maoists). The other naxalite Sagar was a key member of the same Platoon-55. Both were the members of the military unit of the naxal extremists operating in MP, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra.
The incident, which is being seen as a major success due to the coordinated action by the anti-naxal operations of MP, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra police in tandem with the ITBP personnel comes ahead of bamboo cutting season in the dense forests, when the naxals indulge in money extortion from the contractors.
