Naxal blast kills 7 CRPF jawans in Chhattisgarh

Seven unarmed CRPF jawans were killed at around 3.45 pm on Wednesday as the vehicle they were travelling in was blown away by a powerful landmine blast triggered by Maoists in South Bastar’s Dantewada district in Chhattisgarh.

“The ultras triggered an IED blast at Melawada targeting jawans of CRPF’s 230th Battalion, killing seven troopers”, CRPF IGP Sadanand Dante said. However, he denied reports that the Naxals looted weapons.

“The jawans were unarmed and in civil dress. They were returning from leave to join duty at the CRPF camp at Bhusraj Ghati,” he said. The vehicle was thrown nearly 50 meters in the air and broke into pieces under due to the explosion. The blast also left a 4-foot crater at the site.

The slain jawans have been identified as Vijay Raj, Rajendra Das, R.N. Das, Devendra Chourasia, Pradeep Tirkey, Kuderesu and Mrutyunjay Mukherjee.