Two Naxals were killed in an exchange of fire with security forces in Chhattisgarh’s insurgency-hit Bijapur district, police said on Saturday.
The gun battle took place in the jungles of Kolnar and Adawada villages under Bhairamgarh police station limits when a joint team of security personnel was out on a counter-insurgency operation, Bijapur District Superintendent of Police (SP) Kl Dhruv said.
The team comprising CRPF’s 222nd battalion and police personnel from three local police stations was carrying out the operation in the jungles of Bhairamgarh, Jangla and Bangpal, the SP said.
The team came under heavy fire from Naxals while advancing through the forests along Indravati river near Kolnar and Adawada, leading to a gun-battle which lasted for about two hours.
After the Naxals fled, two bodies of their associates were found from the spot, the SP said, adding that the bodies were identified as Baman Mandavi (30) and Sannu Kohle (25). Both the Maoists were carrying cash reward of Rs 1 lakh each on their heads.
Also, two muzzle-loading guns, two tiffin bombs and a huge cache of explosives were recovered, Dhruv informed.