Naxalite woman injured, BSF jawans hurt in Chhattisgarh gunfight

Fagni Podiyami – focus keyword : Woman Naxalite injured in gun-battle with security personnel in Kanker, Fagni Podiyami identified as suspect

A female Naxalite was severely wounded in a shootout with security forces in the Kanker district of Chhattisgarh, while two Border Security Force (BSF) jawans suffered minor injuries, according to police reports on Saturday. The incident occurred on Friday evening in the forests of Urpanjhur village when combined teams of security personnel were searching the area. The BSF’s 178th, 47th, and 132nd battalions and District Force (DF) launched a search operation from different camps in Pakhanjore, Chhotebethiya, Bande, Badgaon, and Partapur police station areas. During the patrol, which began from Mendra camp under Partapur police station limits, Naxalites opened fire on the team around 9 p.m. near Urpanjhur, according to Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range) Sundarraj P. After the gunfight, security personnel found a woman Naxalite with bullet injuries on her legs at the scene. Constables Vikas Singh and Manlik Ram, members of the BSF’s 178th battalion, sustained minor injuries in the gunfight and were treated at the camp, according to Kanker Superintendent of Police Shalabh Sinha, who stated that their condition was stable. The injured Naxalite has been identified as Fagni Podiyami, a Local Organisation Squad (LOS) member active under the Maoists’ RKB (Rajnandgaon Kanker Border) division. She is the wife of Vinod Gavde, Maoists’ Madanwada Local Organisation Squad (LOS) commander, and has a reward of Rs 1 lakh on her head. She has been admitted to Kanker district hospital, and reinforcements have been sent to the area where the search operation is currently underway. A single-shot rifle, a cache of live cartridges for various weapons, six pressure cooker improvised explosive devices (IEDs), one solar plate, three bundles of electric wire, batteries, Maoist uniforms, bags, pamphlets, medicines, and other materials were discovered at the scene.

News Source : PTI