In yet another gruesome killing, Naxals shot dead a 50-year-old man in Gadchiroli. The victim and his wife were commanders of a Naxal dalam in the 90s. The police said that the couple had settled in a village in Bhamragadh taluka, after serving eight years in jail.
The incident took place at around 8.30 am on Saturday. Pawankumar Bhalavi, 50, was on his way to his farm on Arewada Road, which is 5 km from Bhamragadh, when armed Naxals shot him dead.
“Bhalavi was arrested by the Bhandara Jilla police in 1992. At the time of his arrest, he was the commander of the Salekasa dalam. During the 90s, he was active in Gondia and the northern Gadchiroli areas,” an officer from Gadchiroli said.
According to the officer, his wife who was also a Naxal, was arrested at the same time. “They were in prison for eight years, after which they quit Naxalism and settled in Bhamragadh,” said police sub-inspector S.T. Ingavle from Bhamragadh police station.
Another officer said that the Naxals might have suspected him to be a police informer. “Naxals despise fellow Naxals quitting. They kill them to deter others from quitting the movement,” he said.