A day after Union home minister P Chidambaram asked Naxalites to abjure violence and discuss their demands, the Red guerrillas retorted with message inked in blood. Maoist gunmen ambushed a group of 40-odd police personnel, killing 17 and injuring two, at Laheri village under Bhamragad division of Gadchiroli district on Thursday afternoon. The merciless shoot-out took place just 18 km from the Chhattisgarh-Maharashtra border.
Those killed include 10 commandos of the C-60 force drawn from Maharashtra police for anti-Naxal operations, six constables and sub-inspector Chandrashekhar Deshmukh from Laheri police station. For Deshmukh, a 2006 pass out from Nashik police academy, it was his first posting. Police officers said given the serious nature of injuries, the toll could rise.
The attack, which comes just four days ahead of Assembly elections and at a time when the state and central government have been drawing up plans to counter the Red brigade, is the bloodiest in Maharashtra's Naxal history. Earlier this year, state cops lost 15 men in Markegaon and 16, including 5 women, at Hattigota, both in Gadchiroli district.
Thursday's attack occurred in the forested and hilly terrain under the blazing afternoon Sun and lasted for nearly four hours. According to sources, the Maoists numbered more than 300 and comprised mobile military dalams that have recently moved from Chhattisgarh as reported by TOI on September 21. Police said there were many from Nepal among the attackers who were equipped with sophisticated weapons and ammunitions.
The Centre rushed nearly 3,000 BSF troops, who were already in Maharashtra, to the Maoist-infested Gadchiroli district following the killing.
The Naxals also managed to flee with the weapons of the dead policemen. This included several AK-47s, a couple of revolvers, magazines and at least one wireless set.
The Maoists seemed to be setting the tone for coming days when, apart from Laheri, they also struck at two other places in Gadchiroli on Wednesday. A gram panchayat building in Irupdhodri village was set on fire and one person killed whom the Naxals suspected to be an informer. In the third incident, a farmer Suresh Halami (30), who unconfirmed reports say is a surrendered Naxal, was killed. A group of around 20 Naxalites dragged Halami out of his house, slit his throat with sharp weapon and disappeared into the jungles.
These three attacks have shattered the morale of the district police which was gearing up for the Assembly elections scheduled for October 13. ``We are trying to regroup and continue the search operations and are domination exercises,'' said IG of Nagpur range, Surinder Kumar. ``Helicopters will be brought in on Friday to reinforce operations.''
Police had got information about heavy Naxal presence in the thick forests beyond Laheri village and on way to Beenagonda, which is a known stronghold of the rebels. The group of 40, that included 20 C60 commandos under Rama Kuriyani, and another 20, being led by the 29-year-old Deshmukh, were on way to a search operation. They started on foot from Laheri at 11am.
They were ambushed by the Naxals after progressing for just more than a kilometre. Taking advantage of the hilly and thickly forested region, the Naxals started indiscriminate firing. The cops were caught unawares and had no place to hide, especially as they were surrounded from all sides. The Naxals had also taken up positions on the tree tops and behind some gravestones. The rebels had also constructed 'morchas' (barricades) at vantage points. The cops retaliated but were exposed on the lower ground.
There was no help coming for the beleaguered group as another group of Naxals had simultaneously attacked the Laheri sub-police station and kept the personnel under siege. However, they had managed to radio message of the attack on the wireless.
A C60 party from Dhondraj village and BSF parties from Bhamragad, about 18-28 kms away, started out to help. They too could not make much headway as yet another Naxal group ambushed them and kept them busy. The rebels also tried to block the road with felled trees. Fortunately there was no loss of life. By the time the security party from Dhondraj and Bhamragad managed to beat back the Naxals and reach Laheri, the bigger group of Naxals had melted away.
TNN 9 October 2009
