Chhattisgarh: 5 out of 8 policemen killed in Bijapur blast were former Naxalites

Raipur: Of the eight security personnel who lost their lives in a Maoist blast in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district a day ago, five had joined the police force after quitting Naxalism, a senior official said.

Head Constable Budhram Korsa, constables Dumma Markam, Pandaru Ram, Baman Sodhi, all belonging to the District Reserve Guard (DRG), and constable Somdu Vetti of Bastar Fighters were earlier active as Naxalites and joined the police force after they surrendered, Inspector General of Police (Bastar range) Sundarraj P told PTI.

Korsa and Sodhi were natives of Bijapur district, while three others hailed from adjoining Dantewada district, he said.

Last year, 792 Naxalites had surrendered in Bastar region, comprising seven districts, he said.

Eight security personnel, four each from DRG and Bastar Fighters’”both units of state police, and a civilian driver were killed after Naxalites blew up a vehicle which was part of a convoy carrying security personnel near Ambeli village under the Kutru police station area of the district on Monday. It was the biggest strike on security forces by Naxalites in Chhattisgarh in the last two years.

Dubbed as “sons of soil”, the DRG personnel are recruited from among local youth and surrendered Naxals in Bastar division. It is considered as a frontline anti-Naxal force in the state.

The DRG was raised over different periods of time in seven districts of Bastar spread in an area of around 40,000 sq kms, to fight the menace of Left Wing Extremism ongoing from over the past four decades.

It was first set up in Kanker (north Bastar) and Narayanpur (comprising Abhujmad) districts in 2008 and after a gap of five years, the force was raised in Bijapur and Bastar districts in 2013. Subsequently, it was expanded in Sukma and Kondagaon districts in 2014, while in Dantewada, the force was raised in 2015.

State police’s ‘Bastar Fighters’ unit was raised in 2022, wherein local Bastar youth who are familiar with the local culture, language, terrain and have a bond with the tribals, were recruited.