At least eight Indian security guards and a driver were killed in Bijapur district, in the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh, when Maoist insurgents blew up their vehicle with an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) on Monday, media reports said.
The nine were returning from an operation when the IED blew up the Scorpio SUV at Kutru in the Bastar region around 2.15pm. A report in The Times of India said that the weight of the IED was an estimated 70kg, and that the Maoist attack had raised serious questions about how such a large Improvised Explosive Device could be planted there undetected.
Earlier on Monday, security forces attacked Maoists in the Abujhmad region of Chhattisgarh and killed five rebels, including two women. They recovered automatic weapons such as AK-47 and self-loading rifles from the deceased Maoists’ possession. It was this operation that the jawans were returning from when the rebels targeted them.
The eight security personnel belonged to the District Reserve Guard, a specialised police unit to tackle Maoist insurgency in the state.
Visuals showed a massive crater at the blast spot, suggesting the intensity of the IED explosion that killed the jawans.
Meanwhile, responding to the IED blast news, Union Home Minister Amit Shah asserted that the sacrifice of the jawans would not go in vain. “I am deeply saddened by the news of the loss of DRG soldiers in an IED blast in Bijapur (Chhattisgarh). I express my deepest condolences to the families of the brave soldiers,” Shah said.
Reiterating his vow to eliminate Maoists from India by March 2026, he said: “It is impossible to express this grief in words, but I assure you that the sacrifice of our soldiers will not go in vain. We will end Maoism in India by March 2026.”
The Maoist attack comes at a time when security forces are making deep inroads into the Maoist-dominated areas of Chhattisgarh and cornering the rebels.
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnudev Sai condemned the blast and described it as a “heinous” and “tragic” incident.
“This incident is extremely unfortunate. I pay tribute to the brave soldiers who sacrificed their lives and express my heartfelt condolences to their families. A thorough investigation and assessment of this attack are underway. I assure you that the sacrifices of our soldiers will not go in vain. The government is fully committed to eradicating Naxalism,” he was quoted as saying by the media.
Who are the Maoists?
Maoists follow a communist ideology propagated by the late Chinese leader Mao Zedong.
The insurgents have long been fighting a guerilla-styled offensive against the government, specifically in central and eastern India. The conflict has triggered regular clashes in the region for decades.
However, the territories in which Maoist rebels operate in India have shrunk significantly over the past several years.
