Gidhni (WB): Four EFR jawans were killed in a surprise assault by Maoists while they were patrolling near Gidhni Bazaar in the Jhargram sub-division of West Midnapore district on Sunday, barely hours after West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee left after a two-day visit to the violence-scarred district.
IG (Western Range) Kuldip Singh said the EFR jawans were
patrolling near a police camp close to a school in the area
under Jamboni police station.
IGP (Law and Order) Surajit Kar Purakayastha said there
were seven jawans when the ultras opened fire. Four died on
the spot while three others managed to escape. They returned
soon and retaliated.
As the exchange of fire was on, some more jawans from the
nearby camp joined, forcing the ultras to flee into the
jungles. The ultras looted the arms of the four slain jawans.
Senior police officials reached the spot soon after the
encounter ended, Purakyastha said.
Yesterday, the Maoists had killed three youths hours
before the Chief Minister's arrival in the district.
The bullet-riddled bodies of Lakhi Das, Jayram Mandi and
Manoranjan, all Jharkhand Party activists, were found on a
road in Kusbani jungle, about 70 km from Midnapore town.
The ultras had also shot at and injured a former Marxist
legislator.
Bureau Report
First Published: Sunday, November 08, 2009, 22:58