Seven Bihar policemen were killed and seven others were critically injured in a fierce encounter with the Maoists in a hilly terrain in the southern district of Lakhiserai on Sunday evening. The police confirmed the seven deaths on Monday, though the number of dead policemen is expected to go higher.
Angry policemen, who blamed indifference on part of their senior officials for the deaths, assaulted Lakhiserai SP Ashok Kumar Singh close to the encounter site on Monday. Lack of proper assessment of the combat situation and inordinate delay in dispatching additional police forces to tackle the Maoists are said to have increased the number of the deaths of the policemen.
Seven policemen, who received injuries in this encounter in the forests of Ghogharghati-Kanimoh under Kajra police station, were rushed to the Patna Medical College and Hospital, where their condition is stated to be stable. Nearly 10 policemen were still missing since the encounter ended, sources said, though the police both in Lakhiserai and Patna declined to either confirm or deny it.
Chief minister Nitish Kumar visited the hospital and spoke to the injured cops on Monday. He promised an ex-gratia aid of `10 lakhs for the next of kin of each dead policeman along with insurance compensation of `13 lakhs and pension. For the injured, Mr Kumar assured ex-gratia payments ranging from `50,000 to `2 lakhs.
The gunbattle with the Left wing rebels, which began on Sunday noon and continued till late in the night, took place during a combing operation by a joint team of some 50 policemen from the district police, Bihar Military Police (BMP), Special Auxiliary Police (SAP) and CRPF’s Cobra aimed at flushing out the rebels reported to be hiding in the area. The dead policemen include the SHO of Kavaiya police outpost, Bhulan Yadav, and six constables from the BMP.
Sources said the rebels, who carried on an intermittent exchange of fire for over 16 hours, first abducted three policemen. They finally took away 36 rifles from the policemen, said officials. “These deaths give us at the Police Headquarters both sadness and pride for the supreme sacrifices. An inquiry has been ordered to look into the reasons of the deaths. The DGP has left for the site and combing operations have been heightened with help from a helicopter,” said Bihar police ADG (headquarters) P.K. Thakur.
Both he and the Lakhiserai SP spoke of “possible deaths and injuries on the other side,” but so far no Maoist’s body has been recovered.
***
Abducted BDO freed
Age correspondent
PATNA
Maoist rebels on Monday released the BDO of Tariani block in Bihar’s Sheohar district, Manoj Kumar Singh, from captivity 24 hours after abducting him from a village where he was conducting inspections of voter identity cards and ration cards. Rising pressure from the police, who formed 12 teams for conducting raids, is said to have prompted the rebels to release the BDO.