Addl SP killed in Maoist attack
Paderu (ASR District): Additional Superintendent of Police Akash Rao Giripunje was killed on Monday morning in a Maoist attack in the Sukma district of Chhattisgarh. Maoists targeted a police vehicle and triggered a powerful IED blast. Akash Rao, who was seriously injured in the explosion, was rushed to the Konta hospital but succumbed to his injuries shortly after.
Along with Konta Circle Inspector, a few other police personnel were also injured in the incident. The injured were shifted to Jagdalpur Hospital for treatment.
The incident took place in a Maoist stronghold area called Dondra under the jurisdiction of the Konta Police Station in the Sukma district.
On Sunday night, Maoists torched a JCB machine near a mining plant in the Dondra area, which is located around two kms from the Konta–Errabore road. While investigating that arson incident on Monday morning, ASP Akash Rao and other officers were heading to the site when the Maoists ambushed them and triggered the blast.
It is said that the Maoists employed their usual strategy of destroying a vehicle in a remote location and then targeting the police officers who came for investigation.
This IED blast occurred just a day before the bandh called by the Maoists on June 10. In response, security has been tightened in the region, and officials stated that large-scale combing operations are being launched.
Akash Rao was known as a courageous officer who had a good understanding of Maoist-affected regions and actively led ground-level operations with bravery. Following the Maoist attack in Sukma, the police machinery in the Alluri Sitarama Raju district has been alerted. Vehicle checks are being conducted at multiple locations.
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