Cobra jawan injured in encounter with Maoists
RANCHI/JAMSHEDPUR: A Cobra jawan of the central paramilitary force was injured and at least five Maoist guerilla fighters are learnt to have sustained bullet injuries in an encounter between joint forces of Jharkhand and West Bengal and the red rebels in East Singhbhum district’s Ghatsila area.
The injured jawan has been airlifted to Ranchi where the doctors at a private hospital were operating on his bullet injuries when the report was being filed.
A massive search operation is on in the hills of Basadera where the encounter took place on Sunday morning.
Tents and utensils apparently used by the Maoists have been recovered from the encounter site. Forces said they have also found blood stains at the spot.
“An encounter took place with Akash, secretary of CPI Maoists Bengal committee, and his squad comprising 10-12 fighters this morning near the Dharagiri waterfall,” East Singhbhum rural police superintendent, Shailendra Burnwal told HT.
He said that Akash was the last citadel of Maoists holding the ground firmly in the Bengal-Jharkhand bordering areas despite the surrender of all his top associates.
Wanted by both Jharkhand and West Bengal police, Akash, a man in his 50s, became the top Maoist leader holding sway in the two states after the death of politburo member, Koteshwar Rao alias Kishenji, in an encounter in Jhargram in 2012.
The organisation has since been getting weaker and weaker, with more than 200 Maoist cadres and leaders laying down their arms before the Bengal police in the last four years.
A similar number of rebels have also surrendered in Jharkhand.
A few top Maoists have also been killed. Things have turned worse for the rebel outfit in the last one month when at least 16 Maoists laid down arms in Bengal and seven of them, led by secretary of the Bengal-Jharkhand-Odisha border area regional committee secretary, Kanhu Ram Munda, surrendered in Jharkhand. This virtually cleared the jungles of the red movement.
However, Akash and his squad remain a big challenge for police of both states. The Mamata Banerjee government of West Bengal is trying its best to lure Akash to surrender but he hasn’t responded yet.
Jharkhand police, on the other hand, is luring him with a reward of ₹1 crore if he surrenders before them.
Police are expecting to recover some bodies as the blood stains at the encounter site reveal some casualties.