Narayanpur/Bijapur: Naxalites have blown up a vehicle carrying District Reserve Guard (DRG) personnel in Bijapur, Chhattisgarh, using an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) weighing 60 to 70 kg on Monday, a senior police official said.
Bastar IG Sundarraj P confirmed the IED blast and said the incident took place near Ambeli village under Kutru police station when the security personnel were returning in their vehicle after an anti-Naxal operation.
A police officer said this is the biggest attack by Naxalites on security personnel in the last two years. Earlier on April 26, 2023, a vehicle which was part of a convoy carrying security personnel in Dantewada district was blown up by Naxalites, killing ten policemen and a civilian driver.
Sundarraj P said that on Monday, a joint party of security forces was returning after conducting a search operation. "The convoy of soldiers was passing through Kutru road of Bijapur. Then at around 2.15 PM, Naxalites who had gathered near Ambeli Nala of the Kutru police station area blew up a vehicle of the security forces using an IED," added Sundarraj P.
बीजापुर, छत्तीसगढ़ में सुरक्षा बलों पर हुआ नक्सली हमला निन्दनीय है। देश की सुरक्षा में सर्वोच्च बलिदान देने वाले वीर जवानों के शोक-संतप्त परिवारजनों के प्रति मैं गहन संवेदनाएं व्यक्त करती हूं। हमारा देश नक्सलवाद को समूल समाप्त करने के लिए संकल्पबद्ध है।
— President of India (@rashtrapatibhvn) January 6, 2025
President Droupadi Murmu expressed her deepest condolences to the bereaved families of the brave soldiers. In a post on X, President Murmu said, "The Naxalite attack on security forces in Bijapur, Chhattisgarh is condemnable. I express my deepest condolences to the bereaved families of the brave soldiers who made the supreme sacrifice for the security of the country. Our country is determined to completely eradicate Naxalism."
Union Home Minister Amit Shah vowed to eliminate Naxals from the country by March 2026 and asserted that the sacrifice of those killed by the extremists in Chhattisgarh will not go in vain.
"I am deeply saddened by the news of the loss of DRG soldiers in an IED blast in Bijapur (Chhattisgarh). I express my deepest condolences to the families of the brave soldiers. It is impossible to express this grief in words, but I assure you that the sacrifice of our soldiers will not go in vain. We will end Naxalism in India by March 2026," he said in a post on 'X'.
बीजापुर (छत्तीसगढ़) में IED ब्लास्ट में DRG के जवानों को खोने की सूचना से अत्यंत दु:खी हूँ। वीर जवानों के परिजनों के प्रति गहरी संवेदनाएँ व्यक्त करता हूँ। इस दुःख को शब्दों में व्यक्त कर पाना असंभव है, लेकिन मैं विश्वास दिलाता हूँ कि हमारे जवानों का बलिदान व्यर्थ नहीं जाएगा। हम…
— Amit Shah (@AmitShah) January 6, 2025
Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi condoled the death of soldiers in a Naxal attack and said the increased attacks raise serious questions about the government's ability to maintain national security. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge also offered his condolences and said the Union and the state governments should be more proactive to end this menace so that the precious lives of our soldiers are not endangered.
"Deeply saddened to hear about the martyrdom of many of our soldiers and a driver in the cowardly Naxalite attack in Bijapur, Chhattisgarh. I pay my heartfelt tribute to the martyrs and hope for the speedy recovery of the injured soldiers," Gandhi said in a post on X. Expressing his condolences to the bereaved families in this difficult time, the Congress leader said the entire country is united against terror and violence.
"The increase in martyrdom of soldiers raises serious questions about the government's ability to maintain national security," he said. Echoing similar sentiments, the Congress president said, "Deeply anguished by the cowardly Naxal attack in Bijapur district of Chhattisgarh, where eight of our brave Jawans of the District Reserve Guard (DRG) and a driver made the supreme sacrifice serving the nation."
"Our heartfelt condolences to the families of our courageous heroes. The nation is united against the scourge of this mindless act of terror. Naxalism is an internal security threat and has no place in a Democracy," Kharge said on X. "The Union and the State Governments should be more proactive to end this menace, so that the precious lives of our soldiers are not endangered," he added.
Chhattisgarh Governor Ramen Deka and state Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai expressed grief over the death of DRG personnel and the civilian driver in the blast.
Governor Deka strongly condemned the Naxal attack as a heinous crime. Chief Minister Sai said Naxalites were frustrated with the ongoing counter-insurgency operation in the Bastar region and therefore, have resorted to such cowardly acts. Martyrdom of jawans will not go in vain, he asserted.
Chhattisgarh Deputy Chief Minister Arun Sao expressed grief over the loss of lives. Sao told the news agency ANI, "Information about a cowardly attack by Naxalites has come from Bijapur. This is a cowardly action...as Jawans are working towards eliminating Naxals...they have done this due to desperation and disappointment. This sacrifice of the jawans won't go in vain."
This is the third incident of the year 2025 in Chhattisgarh. Earlier, three Naxalites were killed in a Naxal encounter on January 3 in the Gariaband district. After this, five Naxalites were killed in an encounter in Dantewada on January 4. At the same time, Dantewada DRG's head constable number 33 Sannuram Karam was martyred.
The term improvised explosive device came from the British Army in the 1970s. The Irish Republican Army (IRA) used agricultural fertilizers and bombs made from SEMTEX smuggled from Libya to make highly effective booby trap devices or remote-control bombs. The term IED was coined by the British Army to describe booby traps set up by the IRA during the Northern Ireland conflict. The term IED first came into common use during the United States invasion of Iraq.
POWERFUL IED BLAST TO KILL SECURITY FORCES IN INDIA
03.01.2025 (Chhattisgarh): Three jawans of the (DRG) were injured when a pressure IED planted by Naxalites exploded in the Bijapur district.
24.11.2024 (Chhattisgarh): A DRG constable was injured when a pressure IED planted by Naxalites exploded in Chhattisgarh's Sukma district.
29.09.2024 (Chhattisgarh): Five CRPF personnel, including an officer, were injured in an IED blast triggered by Naxals in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district.
25.02.2024 (Chhattisgarh): A head constable of the Chhattisgarh Armed Force (CAF) was killed after a pressure IED planted by Maoists went off in the Bijapur district.
19.10.2024 (Chhattisgarh): 2 Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) personnel were killed and two policemen suffered injuries in an IED blast triggered by Naxals in Chhattisgarh's Narayanpur district. The explosion occurred near Mohandi village in the Abujhmad area while security forces were returning from an anti-Maoist operation.
17.07.2024 (Chhattisgarh): 2 security personnel lost their lives and four were injured in an IED blast during an anti-Maoist operation in forests of Bijapur district of insurgency-hit Bastar region.
26.04.2023 (Chhattisgarh): 10 security personnel returning from a counter-insurgency operation and a civilian driver were killed when the vehicle they were travelling in was blown up by Maoists, in Chhattisgarh’s Dantewada.
27.03.2023 (Chhattisgarh): An assistant platoon commander of the CAF was killed by unidentified Maoists in an explosion triggered by an IED blast in insurgency-hit Bijapur district.
08.02.2022 (Chhattisgarh): 4 personnel of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) were injured in an IED blast triggered by Maoists in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district.
04.03.2021 (Jharkhand): 3 security personnel were killed and two injured in a Naxal-triggered IED blast in the forests of Jharkhand's West Singhbhum district.
01.05.2019 (Maharashtra): 15 security personnel and a civilian were killed in an IED explosion triggered by Naxals in Gadchiroli, Maharashtra.
13.03.2018 (Chhattisgarh): Maoists blew up a mine protection vehicle (MPV) in Chhattisgarh’s Sukma district, killing 9 CRPF personnel and seriously wounding two.
27.10.2018 (Chhattisgarh): 4 personnel of CRPF were killed and two injured after Naxals blew up a mine-protected-vehicle (MPV) in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district.
