nAt least 25 villagers were injured, eight of them seriously, after being allegedly beaten by Naxalites for demanding development in their area in Chhattisgarh's Dantewada district, police said on Sunday.
The incident took place on Friday night in Parcheli village in the Katekalyan police station limits. A police team reached there only on Sunday after being alerted about the incident, Dantewada Superintendent of Police Abhishek Pallava said.
Pallava said he and the District Collector recently visited the area during which some people from Parcheli sought construction of roads, an Anganwadi and other development projects in their village.
The officials had assured the villagers their demands would be considered, he said.
When Naxalites came to know that the villagers had sought development works, 10-15 armed Maoists convened a meeting on Friday night in Parcheli, located around 440 km from Raipur, and used sticks to brutally hit the villagers, including women and children, he said.
Police and an ambulance on Sunday morning shifted 25 injured villagers to a nearby community health centre. Eight of them, including a woman, who received severe injuries, were referred to the district hospital for further treatment, Pallava said.
The other 17 were discharged after getting primary treatment, he said.
"Such mass beatings of villagers by Naxalites has become frequent. It is due to their frustration after some of their accomplices surrendered to police while some were arrested," the officer said.
A search is on for the Naxalites involved in the violence, he added.