Raipur: A Naxal commander, carrying a reward of Rs 8 lakh on his head, was injured in an encounter with security forces in a forest in Chhattisgarh's Rajnandgaon district and subsequently detained, police said on Wednesday.
Firearms, including an AK-47 rifle, and 'live' cartridges were also seized from the injured ultra, they said.
The gun-battle took place on Tuesday night when a joint team of security forces was out on an anti-Maoist operation in the Job police outpost area, Rajnandgaon Superintendent of Police Jitendra Shukla told media.
Acting on a tip-off about the movement of ultras from the forest of Job area towards Baghnadi, adjoining Maharashtra, a joint squad of Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and district force had launched the operation, he said.
Security personnel had laid an ambush on Katenga- Pendridih road, located around 150km from the state capital Raipur, anticipating movement of Maoists from the area, Shukla said.
However, sensing the presence of security personnel there, around a dozen of ultras opened fire on them, he said.
After a strong retaliation by security forces, Naxals fled into the dense forest, he said.
During a search of the spot on Wednesday morning, security forces found a Maoist bag and commodities of daily use besides blood stains, indicating some rebels might have sustained injuries in the gunfight, he said.
Security forces further intensified combing in the area to trace injured ultras and they were joined by three teams of the District Reserve Guard (DRG), Shukla said.
Security personnel zeroed in on an injured ultra in Khobha village, who tried to run away but was caught after a short chase," the police officer said.
The injured ultra was identified as David alias Umesh, a native of Gadchiroli district of Maharashtra, who was active as commander of platoon no.1 under MMC (Maharashtra- Madhya Pradesh-Chhattisgarh) zone of Maoists, he said.
David, a Divisional Committee member-rank cadre, was also in-charge of a small action team of naxals on the inter-
state bordering areas, the SP said, adding he was carrying a reward of Rs 8 lakh on his head.
An AK-47 rifle, its three magazines, 54 'live' cartridges, one pistol, one walkie-talkie set, medical items, commodities of daily use and Rs 772 in cash were recovered from his possession, he added.
He has been admitted to Rajnandgaon district hospital for treatment and will be arrested following recovery, the SP added.
(PTI REPORT)
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