Maoists blow up railway tracks in bandh, attack toll rises to 11

RANCHI: The Maoists today began their two-day Bharat bandh by blowing up railway tracks in two districts of Jharkhand, even as the death toll in the Naxal attack on the convoy of independent MP and former assembly speaker Inder Singh Namdhari rose to 11.

Superintendent of Police Kuldip Diwedi said a group of Maoists used an IED to blow up a stretch of tracks between Gomia and Dumri railway stations of the East Central Railway in Bokaro district in the small hours today

Another group of the left wing extremists blasted tracks between Hehegara and Chhipadohar railway stations in Latehar district, police sources said in Latehar.

Hours before the bandh called to protest against the killing of top leader Kishanji in West Bengal last month, began at midnight, the ultras triggered an IED blast targeting the convoy of Namdhari, MP from Chatra, at Ladu More in Latehar district.

Namdhari, who had gone to Latehar to attend a function, narrowly escaped as the explosion occurred moments after his car passed the spot but the police escort car following him came under the impact of the explosion.

With one more policeman succumbed to his injuries late last night, the toll has increased to 11.