Naxal attack in Chhattisgarh's Sukma: Political leaders express pain, salute martyrs

Raiput: Hundreds of Maoists on Monday massacred at least 26 CRPF personnel in Chhattisgarh's Sukma district in one of the bloodiest attack in the state.

The Central Reserve Police Force said the ambush began at 12.30 pm, leading to a gun battle between the troopers and the Maoists.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and many other political leaders took to Twitter to express their pain and described the deadly ambush on the 74th Battalion in Kala Pathar near Chintagufa as "cowardly and deplorable"

Following are some of the reactions:

Attack on @crpfindia personnel in Chhattisgarh is cowardly & deplorable. We are monitoring the situation closely. — Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 24, 2017

We are proud of the valour of our @crpfindia personnel. The sacrifice of the martyrs will not go in vain. Condolences to their families.

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 24, 2017

May those injured in today's attack in Chhattisgarh recover at the earliest. — Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 24, 2017

Extremely pained to know about the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. My tributes to the martyrs and condolences to their families. 1/2 — Rajnath Singh (@rajnathsingh) April 24, 2017

Deeply pained over the loss of our Bravehearts at Sukma. These sacrifices shall not be in vain. 1/ — M Venkaiah Naidu (@MVenkaiahNaidu) April 24, 2017

Pained & saddened at the death of our brave @crpfindia soldiers in #Sukma. My thoughts and prayers are with the affected families. — Dharmendra Pradhan (@dpradhanbjp) April 24, 2017

Condolences to the families of martyred @crpfindia Jawans. Entire nation is with our armed forces against this cowardly attack. — Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) April 24, 2017

Condolences to the families of martyred @crpfindia Jawans. Do the family members and children of Jawans have any human rights or not? — Ravi Shankar Prasad (@rsprasad) April 24, 2017

Shocked & saddened at death of our brave @crpfindia soldiers in #Sukma. My deepest condolences & prayers are with families. — ShivrajSingh Chouhan (@ChouhanShivraj) April 24, 2017

Extremely saddened on the killings of our @crpfindia jawans in #Sukma. Condolences to their families. — Rajiv Pratap Rudy (@RajivPratapRudy) April 24, 2017

Saddened at the tragic death of CRPF jawans in Sukma, Chhattisgarh. Strongly condemn violence. My sympathies with the bereaved families — Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) April 24, 2017

मैं हमले में शहीद जवानों के शोक संतप्त परिवारों के प्रति अपनी सहानुभूति प्रकट करता हूँ। — Yogi Adityanath (@myogiadityanath) April 24, 2017

Congress President Smt. Sonia Gandhi has condemned the attack on CRPF personnel in Sukma by Left Wing Extremists. — INC India (@INCIndia) April 24, 2017

Describing the attack as a mindless & ruthless strike on our security forces, Smt Gandhi said that... — INC India (@INCIndia) April 24, 2017

...the sacrifice of twenty four brave men is a big loss to the nation. Such attacks will never deter the fight against extremism, she added. — INC India (@INCIndia) April 24, 2017