A Chhattisgarh Armed Force (CAF) personnel was hacked to death by Naxalites at a local market in the state's insurgency-hit Bijapur area on Sunday, according to authorities, news agency PTI reported. According to a senior official, the incident took place at 9.30 a.m. in a community within the jurisdiction of the Kutru police station, where a CAF squad was stationed to provide market protection.
"A small group of Naxalites attacked company commander Tijau Ram Bhuarya, who was leading the CAF team," the official was quoted as saying by PTI in its report.
The Naxalites hacked Bhuarya to death with an axe before escaping, he said. Bhuarya belonged to the CAF's 4th battalion, he explained.
When police were notified, they hurried to the scene and initiated a search for the offenders, according to the official.
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Earlier in January this year, three Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) men were killed and 15 others injured after a brutal confrontation with Maoists in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district. The incident occurred at Tekalgudem village, which borders Bijapur and Sukma districts, while a joint security force was conducting a search operation. The conflict happened about 1 p.m., when a detachment from the 201st CoBRA (Commando Battalion for Resolute Action) and the 150th CRPF attempted to build a Forward Operating Base (FOB) in the region.
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On the same day, in a critical operation, security officers successfully prevented a terrible disaster in Chhattisgarh's Dantewada district by detecting and defusing two improvised explosive devices (IEDs) prepared by Naxalites.