As many as 14 Maoists were killed in an encounter with security personnel in Chhattisgarh's Bastar region on Friday, a senior police official said. However, ANI has put the toll at 30.
With this, the number of Maoists killed in the gun battle with the security personnel on Friday has risen to 31, they said, adding that a search operation is still underway in the area.
The Supreme Court of India has expressed concern over the protracted trials in heinous offences related to Maoist activities, stating that indefinite incarceration violates the right to liberty under Article 21 of the Constitution. Two separate benches of the court granted relief to two accused, citing the delayed trials. One bench expedited the trial of a man accused of transporting ammunition for a banned organization, while the other granted bail to a man accused of transporting materials for Naxal activities. The court emphasized the importance of speedy trials and suggested the establishment of special courts to handle Maoist-related cases, aiming to expedite proceedings. The court also criticized the practice of examining an excessive number of witnesses, which can lead to indefinite delays in the conclusion of trials.
The sweeping victory of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance in the Bihar Assembly elections has caused ripples across the country, but perhaps more pronounced in politically crucial Uttar Pradesh, where Assembly elections are due in 2027.
Eight District Reserve Guards (DRG) jawans and a civilian driver were killed in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district when Naxals detonated an improvised explosive device targeting their vehicle. The incident occurred near Ambeli village while the security personnel were returning from an anti-Naxalite operation. This is the biggest Naxal attack on security forces in the region in the past two years.
Two Maoists including a woman Maoist were also arrested and one of them is an area commander of the organisation.
Due to the success of the operation, the entire Korchi-Tipagad and Chatgaon-Kasansur Dalams of Maoists have been wiped out, they claimed.
Nine Naxalites, including three women, were killed in an encounter with security personnel in a forest along the border of Narayanpur and Kanker districts in Chhattisgarh on Tuesday, state's Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Sharma said.
Former IPS officer Shivdeep Lande, the popular Maharashtra-born 'supercop' calls Bihar his 'karmabhoomi.'
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday claimed that the Congress had been unwilling to accept Tejashwi Yadav as the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) chief ministerial candidate and relented only after the Rashtriya Janata Dal pointed a 'katta', an unlicensed country-made gun, at its head.
Three security personnel suffered injuries in the fierce gun-battle and a large quantity of weapons was also recovered from the spot, the state police said.
One of the slain Maoists was identified as DVCM Laxman Atram alias Vishal Atram, incharge of Tipagad Dalam.
The incident took place on Wednesday night in Tarrem area when a joint team of security personnel was returning after an anti-Maoist operation in forests on the tri-junction of Bijapur-Sukma-Dantewada districts, a police official said in Bijapur.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched his Bihar assembly poll campaign, asserting that the NDA under Chief Minister Nitish Kumar will break all previous electoral records. He criticized the INDIA bloc and highlighted the NDA's cohesiveness and development efforts in Bihar.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday launched a sharp attack on country's first premier Jawaharlal Nehru, claiming he prevented Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel from fully integrating Kashmir into the Indian Union.
'Rahul Gandhi's problem is that he doesn't think big.' 'He looks more like an activist, while politics is like a game of chess. You attack and then defend and have a game-plan.'
Altogether seven firearms have been recovered from the encounter site, he said.
If the threat from the 'Maovadis' (Maoists) is fading, the danger now lies with the 'MoUvadis' -- those who might exploit the resource-rich Abujhmad region through corporate or State-backed projects.
The encounter took place in Pujari Kanker forest along the interstate border when a team of Greyhounds, Telangana's elite anti-Maoist force, was out on an operation, he said.
During Operation Kagar, 350 Naxalites have been killed so far, including some of the movement's top leaders.
Nearly 13.04 per cent voter turnout was recorded till 9 am on Wednesday in 43 assembly constituencies in Jharkhand where voting is underway in the first phase, officials said.
The Maharashtra legislative assembly passed the 'Maharashtra Special Public Security Bill' aimed at preventing unlawful activities of Left Wing Extremist organizations, focusing on urban Naxalism and passive militancy.
The Maoist blast took place around 3 pm near Timmapuram village between Silger and Tekalgudem camps of security forces, over 400 km from the state capital Raipur.
They said a 'mock poll' would be conducted in the Central Hall of the Samvidhan Sadan at around 2:30 PM on Monday after the briefing on the procedure to vote in the vice presidential polls.
'Parsis are inclined towards people who work for the welfare of others.'
A businessman in Kerala has released CCTV footage allegedly showing police officers assaulting restaurant employees in custody. The businessman claims the incident occurred in May 2023 and that his attempts to seek justice have been met with resistance.
Setting up new camps of security forces in these villages in the last seven months has been paving the way for development of the respective areas, they said.
The troops of 209 Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (CoBRA) conducted the operation in which eight Naxals were killed and an AK series rifle, three INSAS rifles, a self-loading rifle (SLR), eight country-made guns and a pistol were seized, the officials said.
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'Many of them are mutilated beyond recognition. Every day an encounter takes place.' 'Bastar has been burnt to ash.'
Deva recently replaced Hidma as commander of the Maoists' battalion no. 1, the IG added.
An NIA spokesperson said several digital devices, including mobile phones, SIM cards and memory cards, along with incriminating documents like pamphlets of the proscribed Naxal outfit were seized during the searches.
The security forces had received inputs about the presence of cadres belonging to company no. 5 of Maoists in Bhomra, Hurtarai and Michchebeda villages, he said.
The Maoists have warned that if the government does not stop unfairly targeting them and charging false cases against them, what happened in Kochi at the Jehovah's Witnesses convention can be expected during the 'Hamas rally of fake comrades' in the district, an official said.
Two Maoists -- a man and a woman -- were apprehended following a gun battle in a forest area in Wayanad, Kerala, late on Tuesday night, the police said.
Six Naxalites, including "deputy commander" Punem Nagesh, his wife, and another female cadre, were killed in an encounter with security personnel in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district on Wednesday, a police officer said.
'They mean business, but business as usual is unacceptable to them'
The skirmish took place in the forest near Mangnar village under Barsur police station limits, he said.
