3 civilians, one CISF jawan killed in IED blast in Chhattisgarh

NEW DELHI: Just four days ahead of the first phase of polling in the Chhattisgarh assembly election, Maoists blew up a bus early on Thursday morning, killing a Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) jawan and four others in Bacheli hilly area of Dantewada, which is one of the worst left-wing extremism (LWE) -affected districts in the state.

“CISF personnel had gone to the local market in a mini-bus early in the morning to buy vegetables and other items. They were returning to their camp in Akashnagar, having finished their shopping, when Maoists triggered IED (improvised electronic device) shattering the bus in Bacheli area. A CISF jawan, the driver, conductor, a cleaner and a bus driver died in the explosion,” Dantewada’s superintendent of police (SP) Abhisek Pallav told ET. “Two more jawans of CISF 502nd battalion have been hospitalised with minor injuries.”

CISF head constable D Mukhopadhyay, bus driver Ramesh Patkar, helpers Roshan Kumar Sahu and Johan Nayak, and a truck driver, Sushi l Banjare, lost their lives in the blast, which took place near curve no. 6 on the hills, the SP said.


Maoists have given a call to boycott the assembly election in Chhattisgarh. Polling for the first phase of the election in the Maoist dominated area of Bastar division will take place on November 12. In the pamphlets circulated in Dantewada, Bijapur and Sukma, CPI (Maoist) has threatened people not to support the ruling BJP, describing it as a “pro-corporate and Hindu fascist” party.

The attack comes a day ahead of PM Narendra Modi’s rally in Jagdalpur, which is about 85 kms away from Dantewada where Maoists had also killed a Doordarshan News cameraman and police personnel on October 30. After the attack, security forces launched a combing operation in the intense conflict zone.