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Naxals target BSF vehicle in Odisha blast, 4 killed
After a lull, allowing some breathing space to the security forces in the district, Maoists on Friday blew up a Border Security Force vehicle by triggering an improvised explosive device (IED) near Janiguda, in Malkangiri district, killing four, including a Commandant of the 107th Battalion and his second-in-command.
Two civilians were also injured in firing that followed the ghastly incident. The vehicle was mangled beyond recognition. The attack came strategically on the eve of the first-phase Panchayat poll in the district on Saturday in an apparent attempt to terrify voters.
The victims have been identified as Commandant G R Khaswan, his Second-in-Command Rajesh Sharan, Inspector Ashok Yadav and Assistant Sub-Inspector and radio operator of the squad, Jitendra Sahu. According to reports, the officers were returning in their vehicle after supervising security arrangements for the first-phase Panchayat poll. The IED blast took place at about 1.30 pm while their Bolero was passing through the ghat road.
The civilians were identified as Sugandhu Kundu and Bishnu Jani. They are said to be officials of the Potteru Irrigation Project and were going to Chitrakonda in their jeep. The officials reportedly sustained injuries when the Maoists fired minutes after the blast, possibly mistaking them for policemen.
Sensing the presence of more than hundred Maoist cadres on the hilltop, forces were immediately rushed to the area to start vigorous combing operation. Sources said the standard operating procedure might not have been followed by the officers during their return journey. Similar errors by security personnel had led to disasters in the past.
After a lull, allowing some breathing space to the security forces in the district, Maoists on Friday blew up a Border Security Force vehicle by triggering an improvised explosive device (IED) near Janiguda, in Malkangiri district, killing four, including a Commandant of the 107th Battalion and his second-in-command.
Two civilians were also injured in firing that followed the ghastly incident. The vehicle was mangled beyond recognition. The attack came strategically on the eve of the first-phase Panchayat poll in the district on Saturday in an apparent attempt to terrify voters.
The victims have been identified as Commandant G R Khaswan, his Second-in-Command Rajesh Sharan, Inspector Ashok Yadav and Assistant Sub-Inspector and radio operator of the squad, Jitendra Sahu. According to reports, the officers were returning in their vehicle after supervising security arrangements for the first-phase Panchayat poll. The IED blast took place at about 1.30 pm while their Bolero was passing through the ghat road.
The civilians were identified as Sugandhu Kundu and Bishnu Jani. They are said to be officials of the Potteru Irrigation Project and were going to Chitrakonda in their jeep. The officials reportedly sustained injuries when the Maoists fired minutes after the blast, possibly mistaking them for policemen.
Sensing the presence of more than hundred Maoist cadres on the hilltop, forces were immediately rushed to the area to start vigorous combing operation. Sources said the standard operating procedure might not have been followed by the officers during their return journey. Similar errors by security personnel had led to disasters in the past.
