Bhubaneswar:
A Maoist couple was gunned down by police in Odisha's Koraput district, an official said on Friday.
Chitrakam Reddy alias Sitru, 30, and his wife were killed in a forested area near Badamathur village, 600 km from here, on Thursday night when a police team raided a Maoist camp in the region following an intelligence input.
The exchange of fire lasted for two hours, Koraput Superintendent of Police Anup Kumar Sahu told IANS, adding that the couple were killed on the spot while the other rebels managed to escape.
Sitru was the Communist Party of India-Maoist's (CPI-Maoist) area commander of the Jhanjabati Srikakulam division that operates in parts of Koraput district and Vijayanagaram area of Andhra Pradesh, he said.
The rebel leader was accused of committing crimes like murder, loot, arson and extortion. Two locally made guns and Maoist literature were seized, Sahu said.
The tribal-populated Koraput district is considered a Maoist stronghold.