Security forces deployed in Chhattisgarh are on a cleansing drive before state elections scheduled for November 10 and 12. According to the sources, security forces have been asked to arrest Maoists by patrolling the interior forests as they the leftist terrorists can disturb the law-and-order situation during elections.

Sources in the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) have confirmed that an extra force of 700 personnel has been deployed. The force will stay in the interiors of the forest area for the next two months. 

Working on the new strategy, 16 naxals, five of them suspected to be involved in a deadly attack on a CRPF team last year which took lives of 25 CRPF personnel, were arrested on Sunday from the Sukma district of Chhattisgarh. According to the police, among the arrested ultras, two were women.

All Maoists have been arrested from the interiors close to the Minpa village under the Chintagufa police station limits by a joint team of the Special Task Force (STF). “We have identified locations which can be on targets of naxals. They have got explosives to disturb the law-and-order situation during elections. They can also target some rallies but sufficient arrangements have been made,” a senior District Reserve Group official said.

According to the official, the DRG received some information about the movement of naxals. A joint team launched an operation from the Burkapal camp towards Minpa and Tadmetla and arrested all the suspects.

All the arrested communist-terrorist cadre were active as members of either militia groups or the Dandakaranya Adivasi KisanMajdoorSangthan (DAKMS), a front organisation of Maoists, the police officer said.

Of them, five — identified as Sodhi Ganga, MadviBhima, Banjam Nanda, MadviBhima and MuchakiMukka — were allegedly involved in a deadly attack on the CRPF personnel at Burkapal in the Sukma district in April last year, the officer said.