Chhattisgarh: Security forces identify Maoists’ bodies, search continues

Security forces have identified the bodies of two notorious Maoist cadres who were neutralised during an exchange of fire in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district, police officials said on Friday. The encounter took place in the Kawargatta area of south Bijapur, where a large-scale search operation remains underway.The deceased have been identified as Pradeep alias Joga, an Area Committee Member (ACM), and Bhima Weko. Both belonged to the Pamed Area Committee and carried declared rewards of ₹5 lakh and ₹2 lakh, respectively. Their bodies were recovered from the encounter site following the operation, officials added.
Police said the two cadres were involved in several violent incidents in the Pamed Area Committee region, including the murder of Bhima Madkam, the former sarpanch of Kawargatta gram panchayat. Security forces recovered one AK-47 rifle, a 9 mm pistol, ammunition, explosives and other Maoist-related materials from the spot.Bijapur Superintendent of Police Jitendra Kumar Yadav said the operation was launched based on specific intelligence inputs regarding the presence of armed Maoist cadres in the Kawargatta–Gundrajgudem forest and hilly terrain under the limits of Pamed police station. A joint team of the District Reserve Guard (DRG) moved into the area on the evening of January 28.An exchange of fire broke out around 7 am on January 29 between the DRG personnel and the Maoists, following which a thorough search of the area was conducted. During the subsequent combing operation, the bodies of two uniformed Maoist cadres were recovered.
Inspector General of Police, Bastar Range, Sundarraj Pattilingam, said both cadres were linked to multiple incidents of violence and killings of civilians in the region, including the recent murder of the former sarpanch. He added that sustained anti-Naxal operations across the Bastar Range have significantly weakened the Maoist organisation and brought it close to collapse.SP Yadav said continuous intelligence-based operations against Maoists in Bijapur district have resulted in consistent successes for security forces. “The killed cadres were active members with bounties on their heads. Such operations will continue with full determination to ensure peace, security and development in the district,” he said.
Pattilingam reiterated that security forces remain fully committed to the safety of local citizens, noting that the elimination of cadres involved in civilian killings has brought a sense of relief and improved security among villagers in the area.He also appealed to remaining Maoist cadres to shun violence, surrender and join the mainstream under the government’s rehabilitation policy, cautioning that security forces are prepared to take decisive legal action against those who continue armed activities.Meanwhile, extensive and intensive search operations involving additional teams of the DRG, Bastar Fighters and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) are continuing in the region to ensure no Maoist presence remains.