The CPI (Maoist) suffered yet another jolt in the district as two of its armed cadres were killed in an “exchange of fire” with the police in the Vaddipeta-Pusuguppa forest area in Charla mandal on Monday afternoon.
The identity of the duo could not be immediately known, sources said.
The incident occurred less than 24 hours after the rebels blew up a portion of the Pedamidisileru-Tippapuram road near Taliperu irrigation project in the border mandal on Sunday night.
Maoists observed a bandh in the Agency areas of the tribal dominated district on Sunday to protest the killing of their outfit’s commander Devalu alias Shankar in a “shootout” with police, what the rebels termed as a “fake encounter” in Gundala mandal on Thursday, sources added.
An exchange of fire occurred between a group of armed underground extremists and the district police special party during a combing operation by the latter in the forest area between Vaddipeta-Pusuguppa villages at around 3 pm on Monday, said the District Superintendent of Police Sunil Dutt.
The exchange of fire lasted for about 20 minutes. On searching the area, the police found bodies of two male extremists. Police also seized two fire arms - one SBBL and one short weapon (pistol) and two howersacks, the SP added.
The search operation is still going on and further details are awaited.
The combing operation was launched based on reliable inputs that Maoist teams were moving in Charla mandal to destroy public property and commit sensational attacks targeting security personnel and public representatives.
