BSF jawan killed in Maoist explosion in Chhattisgarh

Raipur: A jawan of Border Security Force (BSG) was on Thursday killed in an improvised explosive device (IED) explosion triggered by Maoists in Kanker district under Bastar in Chhattisgarh.

The slain jawan, identified as head constable Akhilesh Rai (41), stepped on an IED buried under the road by Maoists in the forested village of Sadaktola under Partapur police station limits and got blown up.

He later succumbed to injuries, police said.

The incident took place when a joint search party comprising personnel of district force and BSF was conducting road opening operations in the area to sanitize the area, police said.

This is the second such incident in Bastar in the last 24 hours.

On Wednesday, a jawan of Chhattisgarh Armed Force (CAF) was killed in an IED explosion triggered by Maoists in Amdai iron ore mines area in Narayanpur district under Bastar in the state.

The slain jawan was identified as Kamlesh



Kumar.

Meanwhile, a hardcore Naxal carrying a bounty of Rs 14 lakh on his head was on Thursday gunned down in an encounter with security forces in Balaghat district in Madhya Pradesh.

The slain Maoist, identified as Chaitu alias Markam Hidma (25), was a member of the Malanjkhand area committee of the outlawed CPI (Maoist), police said.

He hails from Bijapur district under south Bastar in Chhattisgarh.

Acting on intelligence inputs, a joint search party comprising state police and Hawk force, the counterinsurgency wing of Madhya Pradesh police, raided the hideouts of the Maoists in a forest in Soup Khar under Garhi police station, leading to a fierce encounter between them.

Later, security forces recovered the body of the Maoist at the encounter site, police said.

He is the fourth hardcore Maoist to have been gunned down in the encounter with security forces in Madhya Pradesh in 2023.