Balaghat : An encounter took place between the police and Naxalites in Kotiya Tola of Godri Chowki under Hatta police station of the district today. A top Naxalite Ukas alias Sohan, who had a reward of Rs 14 lakh on his head, was allegedly killed in the gunfire. He was a resident of Bastar in Chhattisgarh. The Balaghat district of Madhya Pradesh is a Naxalite affected area. Here we often hear news related to Naxalite activities and encounters.
According to the information reaching here, the Naxalite was in plain clothes. In a joint operation of the Balaghat district security forces and the Hawk Force, success has been achieved once again in the operation to eliminate Naxalites. A reward of Rs 14 lakh was declared on the Naxalite killed in the police encounter. The incident took place in the forests of Kothiyatola of village Kariyadanda under Hatta police station area.
About the deceased Naxalite, ADG Jaideep Prasad said that 'He is a resident of Chhattisgarh. He was involved in Naxalite activities in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra. A reward of Rs 14 lakh was declared on him. Ukas was the ACM of KB Division. A 315 bore rifle and Kenwood wireless set have been recovered from him.'
On this information about the Naxal movement, Hawk Force started an intensive search operation in the forest. Hawk Force called out to 10-12 Naxalites going in plain clothes in Kothiyatola village for questioning. During this, the suspected Naxalites opened indiscriminate fire on Hawk Force. In self-defense, Hawk Force soldiers fired back. During this, the Naxalites fled taking cover of dense forest and mountains. During the search, the body of a Naxalite was recovered. He was identified as the dreaded ACM Sohan alias Ukas.
While information is being received about other Naxalites being injured, a search operation is being conducted by the Hawk Force personnel under the guidance of Superintendent of Police Sameer Saurabh, who visited the spot.
SP Saurabh, also confirming the incident, said, 'In the exchange of fire between the security forces and the Naxalites, the security forces have killed a Naxalite carrying a reward of Rs 14 lakh. The operation is going on in the area. An alert has been issued in the district after the incident.' It is worth noting that on April 1 also, the soldiers had killed two Naxalites. Another Naxalite was killed in December 2023.
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