INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
policemen and a cameraperson of national broadcaster Doordarshan was killed, had no connection with the coming elections, the state police
The police team was on a patrolling operation and the three-member team from Doordarshan, which was accompanying them, got caught in the
crossfire, they said."I have been asked if today's incidents and the incident the day before pertains to upcoming polls
No, this is to do with the road construction," a spokesperson of the police told reporters in the evening.The journalists, said a member of
the Chhattisgarh police, were on way to a village, Nilawaya, when they were ambushed around 11 am."Our entire team was coming to this
village to cover the election that is happening for the first time here," said Mormukt Sharma, who was part of the crew.The team, which was
travelling on three bikes, had stopped midway to get shots of a Maoist poster that advised the people to boycott the coming elections, when
The Maoist-affected district votes on November 12.The shootout, the police spokesperson said, continued for nearly 50 minutes.By the end of
it, two policemen and Doordarshan cameraperson Achitanand Sahu were dead
It is possible that two Maoists have also been killed, the police said, but the bodies are yet to be recovered."As he was shot, he fell
We knew immediately it was a Naxal attack
We also fell off the bikes and took shelter under this tree
We could have also been shot," Mr Sharma said.Mr Sahu, who was from Odisha, was working with the Doordarshan office in Delhi.Union minister
Rajyavardhan Rathore later said his wife will be given a job in the government
An ex-gratia of Rs 15 lakh has also been announced.On Saturday, four personnel of the Central Reserve Police Force were killed and 2 injured
when Maoists blew up their mine-protected vehicle in the Bijapur district.Yesterday, Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, who was
campaigning in Chhattisgarh, claimed that the number of Maoist-affected districts has reduced from 150 to 78-80 over the years.
