The 4 policemen were kidnapped by Maoists from this bus in Chhattisgarh
The bodies of four policemen kidnapped by Maoists on Monday were found in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district today. Their bodies were found just 5 km from where they were kidnapped.
The policemen, all assistant constables, were kidnapped the Maoist-dominated Kutru village in Bijapur late on Monday. Two of them were kidnapped from a bus, while the other two were stopped while they were riding a motorcycle. All four were killed with sharp weapons, said Sukhnandan Rathore, a senior police officer involved in anti-Maoist operations.
The bodies were thrown on the roadside near a forest area, just a few kilometres from a paramilitary camp, he added.
"The Maoists are trying to spread terror. It shows how cruel they are...they are frustrated and losing ground," said Chief Minister Raman Singh.
Police teams have been sent out to the jungles to look for the killers.
The policemen, Jaidev Yadav, Mangal Sodi, Raju Tela and Rama Majji, were recruited as auxiliary personnel, who assist the state police in anti-Naxal operations and are known as 'followers'.
The four policemen were cremated with full honours today.
In a letter, Maoists claimed all four policemen had admitted before the Jan militia court to beating villagers and setting houses on fire after which they were killed.
The Opposition is now questioning the government's anti-Naxal strategy. "Government attitude had been very negative. Proper action is not being taken. Government is equally responsible as Naxals for the killing," said Shailesh Nitin Trivedi, spokesperson Chhattisgarh Congress.
Questions are also being raised whether the search operation was ineffective as the bodies were found just two kilometres from a CRPF camp.
The government describes the Maoist insurgency as the country's most serious internal security threat.