MULUGU: Three Maoists died in a ‘police encounter’ on the Telangana-Chhattisgarh border in the early hours of Monday. The scene of the alleged encounter falls under the jurisdiction of Peruru police in Telangana’s Mulugu district.
Reportedly, police surrounded a forest area in the region based on intelligence from a reliable source, and the three ultras were killed in a subsequent exchange of fire between the cops and the Maoists.“In the early hours of Monday, the militia members began firing at the police out of the blue, forcing the latter to retaliate with gunfire,” Mulugu district Superintendent of Police (SP) Sangram Singh G Patil told the media on Monday.
Sources said that a week ago, the police department had intensified combing operations in the said forest area on learning that top Maoists leaders had entered the State via Chhattisgarh. Patil added, “A joint combing operation by the Mulugu police, Greyhounds and Bijapur police (Chhattisgarh) was launched in the area after we received inputs that the Maoist party was planning a major unrest.”
He said that combing operations were underway to apprehend the other Maoists who had escaped into the thick jungles of Eturunagaram, Wazeedu, Peruru and Venkatapuram.Meanwhile, CPI (Maoist) Telangana committee spokesperson Jagan, in a press release, alleged that the three Maoists were killed in a fake encounter. “The police picked up the three Maoists and later killed them in cold blood,” he said.
The party has given a bandh call for October 27 in protest against the killings. The slain Maoists have been identified as Naroti Dhamaal (Area Committee Member rank), who was a native of Gadchiroli district in Maharashtra, and party members Sodi Ramal Dee alias Santhosh and Punum Baduru Dee.
The police have recovered the following items from the deceased Maoists: a self-loading rifle (SLR) LMG-1, SLR-1, Gun-1, AK-47, magazines SLR LMG 3, AK-47 (3 of 28 rounds), SLR-2 (24 rounds) from the Maoists. Additionally, explosive cordex wires, a pressure cooker, hand grenades and knifes.
Combing ops
Mulugu Superintendent of Police (SP) Sangram Singh G Patil said that combing operations were underway to apprehend the other Maoists who had escaped into the thick jungles of Eturunagaram, Wazeedu, Peruru and Venkatapuram