At least six persons, including an Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) got injured during two different CPI (Maoist) related incidents in latehar and Chatra districts.
One Assistant Commandant of CRPF got injured along with a Jawan of Jharkhand Jaguar during an encounter in latehar while ASP (operations) along with an ASI and two CRPF personnel received serious injuries while diffusing a landmine near Dholki River on the borders of Pratappur and Manatu block in Chatra. “Four persons, including ASP Ravi Shankar Mishra were injured when they were engaged in diffusing a land mine recovered during long range patrolling on the borders of Pratapur and Manatu blocks of Chatra and Daltonganj respectively near Dholki River in Chatra this afternoon,” said Chatra SP Prashant Kumar Karn. All injured persons have been air lifted to Ranchi, said the SP. Condition of Shahjad Alam is said to be serious who was being operated by the team of doctors at Apollo Hospital in Ranchi.
The team when spotted the landmine, succeeded in disposing of the bomb but it went off after it was kept aside, he added. Others who were injured include — ASI Manoj Toppo and CRPF Jawans, Satvir Singh and Tamdev Vikram along with SPO Shahjad. Condition of all the injured persons are said to be stable. In a separate incident, two other CRPF officers were injured in latehar during an encounter which took place out of confusion between the CRPF and jawans of Jharkhand Jaguar injuring one Deputy Commandant and an ASI. It was an accident which took place during a combing operation and two of the officers were injured after a brief firing between the two groups in the jungles of Piri.
Reacting to the incidents of Chatra and latehar, IG and Police Spokesperson Anurag Gupta said that these incidents are bound to happen during the war like situations. “Although, our police force are trained for all types of eventualities, but during a war like situation in the field, such accidents might take place when they are put to the real life situation,” said Gupta. “We need to take precautions that such incidents do not take place in future,” he added.