Chhattisgarh: Three Naxals gunned down by security forces

Three Naxals were killed in an encounter with security forces in Sukma district of Chhattisgarh on Friday, an official said.

The gunbattle took place in the forest area located between Gattapad and Tokanpalli villages under Chintagufa Police Station area around 10 am, Sukma Superintendent of Police Abhishek Meena told PTI. "A joint team of District Reserve Guard (DRG) and Special Task Force (STF) had launched a search operation in the forest of Chintagufa, located around 500 kms away from the capital Raipur, last night," he said. When the patrolling team was cordoning off the forest between Gattapad and Tokanpalli, the Naxals opened fire on them, he said.

Security forces fired in retaliation and the gunfight continued for a while. However, Naxals soon escaped into the forest, he said. During a search of the area, bodies of three ultras clad in 'uniform' along with four weapons, including a 315 bore rifle, a pistol and a muzzle-loading gun, were recovered from the spot, he said. The process of identifying the slain Naxals was on, he said.