Raipur, March 31 Security forces in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district have arrested 13 Maoists across various police station areas. According to senior police officials, seven of them were involved in incidents related to improvised explosive devices (IEDs).
In a joint operation by the District Police Force, the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), and the Cobra Battalion, a fierce encounter took place on Monday, leading to the arrests.
The security forces, which have intensified anti-Maoist operations in areas like Bijapur, Dantewada, Kanker, Sukma, and Narayanpur, recovered explosive materials from the Maoists' possession in Bijapur. Superintendent of Narayanpur, Prabhat Kumar, reported another violent clash between security forces and Maoists in the Ghamandi Para forest of the Abujhmarh region.
While some Maoists managed to escape into the dense forest, it is suspected that several were killed or injured.
Bloodstains and drag marks found at the site support this possibility, though the exact number of casualties remains unconfirmed. Weapons abandoned by the Maoists during the encounter were also recovered.
From the encounter site, security forces seized a significant cache of LWE-related materials, including an SLR rifle, 12 live cartridges, a magazine, a walkie-talkie, backpacks, Maoist literature, medical supplies, and other daily-use items.
Meanwhile, security forces remain active in the Bastar region of Chhattisgarh.
On early Monday morning, an encounter near the Dantewada-Bijapur border resulted in the neutralization of a female Maoist, Gummadiveli Renuka, also known as Saraswati.
She was a high-ranking member of the Central Regional Bureau (CRB) and the Dandakaranya Special Zonal Committee, as well as the editor of Prabhat Patrika.
Renuka, who went by multiple aliases, carried a reward of Rs 45 lakh on her head -- Rs 25 lakh from the Chhattisgarh government and Rs 20 lakh from the Telangana government.
The encounter occurred in the jungle hills between the villages of Nelgoda, Ikeli, and Belnar. Explosive materials, a laptop, Maoist literature, and other essential items were recovered, along with an INSAS rifle, as confirmed by Gaurav Rai, Superintendent of Police, Dantewada.
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