According to Kanker Superintendent of Police Nikhil Rakhecha, a joint team of the District Reserve Guard (DRG) and other security forces had set out on a combing operation in the dense forests of Koylibeda.
The exchange of fire broke out in the early hours when a joint team conducting a search operation came face to face with the Maoists. Officials said the gun battle lasted for a brief period before the extremists retreated into the dense terrain.
Jitendra Yadav, Bijapur superintendent of police, said that fresh exchanges of fire on Sunday led to the recovery of two more bodies of uniformed Maoists, along with an INSAS rifle and a .303 rifle.
A jawan of the District Reserve Guard (DRG) was martyred while valiantly confronting Maoist fire, and several other personnel sustained injuries.
