Chhattisgarh: In midst of Assembly elections, 5 CoBRA personnel injured, 5 Naxals killed in encounter

Two CoBRA personnel were injured in an encounter with Naxals in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district on Monday, even as polling was underway for the first phase of the state elections, police said.

The skirmish took place at a forest in Pamed area, located around 500 km from the state capital Raipur, when a team of security personnel was patrolling in view of the voting going on in the region, a senior police official told PTI. However, ANI later reported that three more CoBRA personnel were injured and around five Naxals had been killed in the encounter. All the CoBRA personnel are out danger

As per preliminary information, a group Naxalites opened fire on the patrolling team of Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (CoBRA), a elite unit of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), he said.

However, ultras fled from the spot after security personnel retaliated, he added.

"Two CoBRA personnel, including a sub-inspector, received injuries in the incident," he said.

Reinforcement was rushed to the spot and efforts were on to evacuate the injured commandos by a helicopter, he said.

Voting in 18 constituencies of eight Naxal-affected districts, including Bijapur, was underway on Monday.

Around 1.25 lakh security personnel were deployed in the region to ensure peaceful polling.