Naxal encounters, IED blast mar 1st phase of polling in Chhattisgarh

The Naxalites created violence in Chhattisgarh during the 1st phase of polling on Tuesday. An AK-47 rifle was recovered after an encounter between Naxalites and security personnel in the Kanker district.

Kanker (Chhattisgarh): An IED blast triggered by Naxalites and three different encounters between them and security personnel marred the first phase of polling underway in Chhattisgarh on Tuesday, officials said. The Naxalites created violence in Kanker, Narayanpur and Dantewada. A commando of CoBRA, an elite unit of CRPF, was injured in the improvised explosive device (IED) blast triggered by Naxalites in the Sukma district while his unit was undertaking an area domination operation to ensure security during the polls, they said.

An AK-47 rifle was recovered after an encounter between Naxalites and security personnel in the Kanker district where polling is being held in the first phase of the state assembly elections, the officials said. A farmer who had gone to graze his cattle was shot in the incident. He was rushed to the hospital by the officials and is undergoing treatment. Some Naxalites might have been killed or injured in the face-off, they claimed.

The incident took place at around 1 pm near Panavar village under Bande police station limits when a joint team of the Border Security Force (BSF) and District Reserve Guard (DRG) was out on an area domination operation given the polling, a senior police officer said. After guns fell silent, an AK-47 rifle was recovered from the spot.

A search was underway in the area, he said. CRPF jawans have recovered two IEDs during a search in the Aranpur police station area under Dantewada assembly constituency. Bande area falls in the Antagarh assembly segment, which is among the 20 constituencies where voting is being held in the first phase of elections on Tuesday.

A brief exchange of fire also took place between Naxalites and security personnel near Banda polling station in Sukma district, the police said. Another encounter took place between security forces and Naxalites in Orchha police station area of Narayanpur district. No harm was reported to security personnel in these two incidents, the police said.