A combined team of CRPF Cobra of 209 battalion and latehar police exchanged heavy firing with Maoist Sudhakaran alias Sudhakar who sneaked into Garu after coming down from Andhra Pradesh. Sources said Sudhakar's team was no less in strength as it had around 150 cadres, all armed heavily. Nakul and Chhotu Kharwar were also there with Sudhakar.
latehar SP Anoop Birtharey confirmed the encounter with the Maoists led by Sudhakar and his cadres, including Nakul and Chhotu Kharwar. Birtharey said the security forces had to lob bombs to scatter the Maoists. The SP said the fighting was most severe for two hours and then it slid down to intermittent firing from the Maoists’ side which was adequately retaliated by the security forces.