Raipur, May 24: In a major Maoist strike, a senior police official and eight constables were killed when nearly 250 Naxals ambushed them in a jungle in Gariabandh area along Chhattisgarh-Orissa border, about 150 km from here.
The 10-member police team led by Additional Superintendent of Police Rajesh Pawar was ambushed last evening in Sonabed jungle, which falls in Chhattisgarh and is close to the Orissa border, Inspector General of Police Rajesh Mishra said today.
Nine policemen, including Pawar, were killed, he said while noting that one of the policemen in the team is missing. The team was on its way to village Sosing, about 15 km from the jungle area, after being informed about Maoist movement there, he said.
Mishra said between 200 and 250 Naxals were involved in the attack and they also hacked the bodies of some policemen with sharp-edged objects.
The policemen were ambushed by the Naxals after their vehicle broke down, following which they boarded a tractor and changed their route and proceeded towards Anamore, about 15 km from Sosing, he said.
However, the Maoists got information about the breaking down of police vehicle and the change in the route plan, following which the Naxals launched a surprise attack by opening fire, Mishra said.
The IG said there was retaliatory fire by the personnel, but there is no report of any Maoist casualty. PTI
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