Two Maoists were killed in an encounter with police forces during an anti-Maoist operation in Odisha’s Kandhamal district on Monday.
Acting on intelligence inputs, a joint team of the District Voluntary Force (DVF) and Special Operations Group (SOG) of the Odisha Police launched an operation on Sunday in the dense forest area under the jurisdiction of Baliguda police station in Kandhamal district. The operation continued for two consecutive days.
According to the police, the Maoists opened fire on the security personnel during the operation, prompting the forces to retaliate. “In the ensuing exchange of fire, two Maoists were killed on Monday,” a police release stated. Sources said the Maoists belonged to neighbouring Chhattisgarh.
The deceased have been identified as Manku, an Area Committee Member (ACM) cadre of the outlawed CPI (Maoist), and Chandan. While Manku and Chandan were killed in the encounter, other members of their group managed to flee the spot.
Following the gun battle, the police recovered a significant cache of arms and ammunition from the site, including a rifle and a walkie-talkie, among other materials.