9 CRPF jawans killed in Sukma Maoist blast
Nine CRPF personnel were killed and two others injured on Tuesday when Maoists blasted the mine protected vehicle (MPV) they were travelling in using over 50 kg of explosives in Kistaram jungle, in Chhattisgarh’s south Bastar district of Sukma.
The attack came about four hours after another CRPF team had a fierce gun battle with about 100 Maoists, also in Sukma’s Kistaram forest in which, sources said, at least three grenades were fired.
Nine CRPF personnel were killed and two others injured on Tuesday when Maoists blasted the mine protected vehicle (MPV) they were travelling in using over 50 kg of explosives in Kistaram jungle, in Chhattisgarh’s south Bastar district of Sukma.
The attack came about four hours after another CRPF team had a fierce gun battle with about 100 Maoists, also in Sukma’s Kistaram forest in which, sources said, at least three grenades fired from Under Barrel Grenade Launcher (UBGL) failed to go off.
“All Maoists were in uniform. Initially our party thought that it is another party of CRPF… but after few minutes they realised that they were Maoists… Initially, our party fired UGBL but three grenades did not explode. Had the grenades gone off, we would have major success in the encounter”, the CRPF officer told to this newspaper.
Despite that the jawans 208 CoBRA (Commando Battalion for Resolute Action) battalion forced the Maoists to retreat into the nearby jungle.
“The Maoists were heard communicating on a Chinese communication set that one Maoist was killed in the incident,” the CRPF officer said.
At around 12.30 pm, the Maoists emerged again, to blow up a vehicle carrying men from CRPF’s 212 battalion.
The impact of the explosion was such that the MPV was tossed eight to ten feet in the air before it crashed on the ground, throwing many personnel out of the vehicle, officials said.
The slain include one assistant sub-inspector, one head constable and seven constables of CRPF. The injured were evacuated by a chopper to Raipur.