“No reports of any injury from the side of the rebels are yet available. However, there was no casualty from our side as the assault plan was quite meticulously executed,” Orissa director-general of police Prakash Mishra said, after at least 14 Maoists were killed in an exchange of fire with security personnel in Orissa’s Malkangiri district late on Friday night, the police said on Saturday.
“The encounter, which started after midnight, continued till early in the morning today,” he said.
The DGP said that some of the slain rebels might have taken part in the attack on the Congress convoy at Darbha in Chhattisgarh.
“Preliminary reports suggest the slain rebels had moved into Orissa from Chhattisgarh to set up a camp in the forest near Padia. We suspect some of them might have participated in the Darbha attack on May 25 early this year. Details will be known after our forces return to the base from the forest area,” the DGP said.
At least 27 persons, including most of the frontline Congress leaders of Chhattisgarh, were killed in the attack.
Apart from the DGP, additional director-general of police Soumendra Priyadarshi, inspector-general (intelligence) Abhaya and director (intelligence) D.S. Kutte have rushed to the spot to take stock of the situation.
Sources said some of the killed rebels belonged to the local operation group and Dandakaranya special zonal committee.
“This is the largest casualty the rebels have suffered in recent times in southern Orissa. They might retaliate for which the police has to remain alert,” former Orissa DGP Gopal Nanda said.
Intense anti-Maoist operations have been underway in Malkangiri for the last month and led to the surrender of over 25 Maoists in the district. Top Maoist leader Golla Ramullu, alias Madhav, who was involved in several cases of violence, including the killing of 38 security personnel in Balimela reservoir on June 29, 2008, was killed during an exchange of fire with SOG and DVF of Malkangiri and Koraput districts on August 23.
Since then, the sources said, the rebels are exploring a massive attack on the security personnel. Search operations have been intensified in the area, the police said.