A fierce gun battle in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district has culminated in the elimination of 18 Naxalites by security forces. The encounter unfolded in the remote forests near the Bijapur-Dantewada inter-district border during an ongoing anti-Naxal operation. Following the operation, a significant quantity of weaponry, including AK-47 and INSAS rifles, was recovered from the deceased rebels.
Confirming the details on Thursday, officials stated that the initial count of 12 Naxalites killed was revised upwards to 18 after further searches. A key figure among those eliminated was Modiyam Vella, a company commander of the People’s Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA). Vella, who was wanted with an Rs 8 lakh bounty, was a notorious operative responsible for multiple attacks, including the fatal Minpa ambush in 2020 that resulted in the deaths of 17 security personnel.
The operation, while achieving a significant success against the Naxal cadre, also led to the martyrdom of three members of the District Reserve Guard (DRG) in Bijapur: Head Constable Monu Vadadi, Constable Dukaru Gonde, and Jawan Ramesh Sodhi. Additionally, two other DRG personnel sustained injuries.
This year’s anti-Naxal operations in Chhattisgarh have been intense, with security forces neutralizing a total of 275 Naxalites. The Bastar region remains a focal point of these operations. The state has tragically lost 23 security personnel in the fight against insurgency so far this year.