Bhubaneswar: At least 12 Maoists were killed in an encounter with security forces in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district on Sunday. The encounter took place in the forests under the Indravati National Park area of Bijapur during an anti-Naxalite operation.
According to Bastar police, a search operation is still underway in the region, with intermittent exchange of fire reported ¹
In another incident, a former sarpanch, Joga Barse, who was contesting the upcoming panchayat elections in Dantewada district, was hacked to death by Naxalites in front of his family members. This incident occurred on Thursday night in Aranpur village. Barse had previously served as sarpanch and was contesting the polls again for the same post ¹.
These incidents are part of a larger trend of Naxal violence in the region. In 2024, at least 68 civilians were killed in separate incidents of Naxal violence in the Bastar region, which comprises seven districts, including Bijapur.
