Suspected CPI (Maoist) rebels blew up a police van carrying 13 persons in Kalapahar area of Palamu district killing seven policemen and seriously injuring another six. The incident took place under Chhatarpur Police Station of Palamu on Wednesday evening when a van carrying the State police personnel was coming back to the district headquarters, said police. According to the officials, an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) was triggered under a police van while it was returning after an operation.
“Seven personnel, including the driver of the vehicle, a havildar, a chowkidar and four constables succumbed to injuries after the blast which was triggered under a Tata 407 vehicle. The vehicle, carrying a team of 13 policemen from the State police, was returning to the police headquarters, after conducting a three-day anti-Maoist operation in the area,” said Jharkhand Police spokesperson SN Pradhan.
“CRPF and other security forces near the vehicle escaped unhurt. Six persons, who are critically injured, are being given preliminary treatment at Daltonganj Sadar Hospital. We are trying to get them flown to Ranchi for better treatment,” he added.
According to sources, the attackers also opened fire on the police party after the blast. The encounter between the police and Maoists continued for quite some time after the incident.
Palamu DIG Saket Kumar Singh along with other top police official immediately rushed to the spot. A massive combing operation was initiated in the area after the incident.
Notably, the incident took place when the State police claimed to have tamed the Maoists in the State to a great extent. Statistics show that in 2015 there were no Naxal attacks on the security forces on police pickets and police stations.
According to the officials, increasing operational reach of the security forces has proved to be a major factor in bringing the graph down as there was not a single day during the last one year when half a dozen operations were not carried out in different parts of the State.
According to State police for the first time since 2011, not a single Naxal attack took place on police stations in Jharkhand in the year 2015 and for the second year in a row, the Maoists could not hold ‘kangaroo courts’ in any part of the State.
“The left-wing extremists (lWE) had made six attacks on police stations/outposts/pickets in 2011, eight times in 2012, five times in 2013 and four times in 2014. But 2015 had been free of such incidents,” stated the booklet.