Raipur
A Naxal carrying a bounty of Rs 5 lakh was killed in an exchange of fire with security forces along the Dantewada-Bijapur border. Following the encounter, police recovered the body along with an SLR, an Insas rifle, a pistol, and a large cache of arms and ammunition from the spot. The deceased Maoist has been identified as Rajesh Punem, an Area Committee Member (ACM) of the Bhairamgarh Area Committee.
Dantewada superintendent of police had received intelligence on 3 March regarding a dump of weapons and supplies hidden by Naxals in the forested hills between Gumalnar, Girsapara, and Nelgoda villages under the Geedam police station limits. A joint team of District Reserve Guard (DRG) and Bastar Fighters, led by DSP Rahul Kumar Uike, launched a search operation based on this input.
Around 8.30 pm, a group of eight to ten armed Naxals from the Bhairamgarh Area Committee, who were lying in ambush, opened fire on the security personnel. The forces retaliated, leading to a heavy gunfight. The Naxals eventually fled the spot, taking advantage of the darkness and dense forest cover.
A subsequent search of the area led to the recovery of Rajesh Punem’s body. Security forces seized an SLR rifle, an Insas rifle, a pistol, walkie-talkies, magazines, and several live and empty cartridges from the encounter site.
