ZCZC
BFF-22
INDIA-REBEL-ARREST
17 left-wing rebels arrested in India
NEW DELHI, Oct. 9, 2018 (BSS/XINHUA) – As many as 17 left-wing Naxalite
rebels have been arrested in two Indian states of Chhattisgarh and Andhra
Pradesh, police said Tuesday.
The arrests took place in the past 48 hours.
“While 16 rebels were nabbed by security forces in the central state of
Chhattisgarh’s Sukma district, one Naxalite commander was arrested in Andhra
Pradesh’s East Godavari district,” a police official said.
Of the 16 held in Chhattisgarh, five rebels were wanted for a deadly attack
on para-military Central Indian Security Force last year, he added.
“The Naxalite commander picked up from Andhra Pradesh has been identified
as Podium Muda. Some 20 gelatine sticks and detonators were seized from him.
All the rebels are being interrogated,” the official said.
Naxalites are currently active in at least seven Indian states, including
Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra.
The Naxalite insurgency began in the eastern state of West Bengal in late
1960s.
Though major offensives by security forces in recent years have pushed the
rebels back to their forest strongholds and the levels of violence have
fallen, hit-and-run attacks are still common.
BSS/XINHUA/GMR/1120 hrs