Eight Naxals were shot dead in a gunbattle with the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and Jharkhand police on Monday morning in Bokaro district, officials confirmed.
The clash occurred in the Lugu Hills area, under Lalpania in Bokaro. According to the CRPF, the exchange of fire has ended and eight bodies have been recovered from the site.
"No injuries have been reported among the security personnel," the CRPF added.
Top Maoist Leader Among Dead
Jharkhand’s Director General of Police (DGP), Anurag Gupta, confirmed that among those killed was a top Maoist leader, Vivek, who had a bounty of ₹1 crore on his head. He said, "Eight Naxals have been confirmed dead in the encounter."
Security forces also recovered a large number of weapons from the site, including an AK-series rifle, an SLR, three INSAS rifles, a pistol, and eight locally made Bharmar guns. Search operations in the area are still ongoing.
Recent Naxal-Related Incidents in Jharkhand
This encounter follows a series of Naxal-related incidents in the state. On April 12, a Jharkhand Jaguar jawan was killed, and a CRPF personnel was injured in an IED (improvised explosive device) explosion in Chaibasa district.
"One jawan lost his life in the blast, and another is receiving medical care," confirmed Ranchi DIG and SSP Chandan Kumar Sinha.
In another earlier incident, two CRPF jawans were wounded in an IED blast during anti-Naxal operations in Jaraikela. Both were airlifted to Ranchi for treatment.
