Maoists killed a local Congress leader in Jharkhand’s Garhwa district and injured a jawan of the joint forces in West Bengal’s West Midnapore district as their two-day five-state shutdown began on Wednesday.
Forty-five-year-old Bardhan Kachhu, a well-known local tribal leader of Garhwa, was kidnapped from Barkol village hours before the shutdown began at midnight Tuesday night and shot dead by the Maoists, Garhwa superintendent of police Richard Lakra said.
Securitymen have launched a combing operation.
The police in Jhargram said Ajay Gupta, a jawan of assistant sub-inspector rank, was critically injured when Maoists fired at a patrol party which was on a routine combing operation in the Birihari forest area.
Mr Gupta was rushed to Midnapore Medical College Hospital in a serious condition.
Security reinforcements were rushed to the area to flush out the Maoists, the police said.
Security has been tightened at all CRPF camps and posts in the Maoist zone of Bankura, Purulia and West Midnapore districts.
The ultras are observing the bandh in Jharkhand, West Bengal, Orissa, Chhatisgarh and Bihar.
In Jharkhand, this was the fifth 48-hour bandh this year which affected mining activity in the mineral-rich state. —PTI