Fourteen people, including seven of a polling party and five Central Reserve Police Force personnel, were killed in separate incidents when Naxals triggered two landmines in Bijapur and Bastar districts of south Chhattisgarh on Saturday.
In the first incident, a bus carrying election personnel from Kutru polling centre to the Bijapur district headquarters was ambushed by Naxals who triggered a landmine explosion near Ketulnar village. The explosion was so intense that the bus was blown to pieces, killing six of its occupants instantly and injuring 20 others, police said. Another polling official succumbed to his injuries at the hospital.
Around 75-100 armed rebels were involved in the ambush. The rebels fled to the core forest after security personnel launched a retaliatory attack. Reinforcements were rushed to the spot, said Additional Director General of Police (Naxal Operation) R K Vij.
In the second incident that took place an hour after the first explosion, Naxals triggered a landmine near Kamanar village under Darbha police station limits in Jagdalpur district, targeting security personnel who were travelling in a 108 Sanjeevani ambulance, 340 km from state capital Raipur.
Five personnel of the CRPF’s 80th Battalion, a technician and the ambulance driver were killed in the explosion.
Police sources said some of the CRPF jawans who were injured in the explosion died after the Naxals opened indiscriminate fire on them. The victims have been identified as inspector M K Rai, assistant sub-inspector Kanti Bhai, head constables Sitaram and M Umlesh and constable Dinesh.
This is the second-deadliest Naxal attack in recent times, after the March 11 incident in which 20 security personnel, including 15 CRPF jawans and five state policemen, were killed in an ambush between Tongapal and Jeeram in Sukma district of Chhattisgarh.
Bastar Lok Sabha seat, which went to polls on Thursday, had recorded a 52 per cent voter turnout. (With PTI inputs)