Jharkhand cop killed, three injured in Maoist attack

Ranchi, May 7 (IANS) A policeman was killed and three people were injured in a Maoist attack Wednesday in Jharkhand’s Hazaribagh district, police said. Sub-inspector Kolibar Purty, posted in Giridih district, was travelling to Ranchi along with two constables when suspected activists of the Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) ambushed their jeep near Vishnugarh area of Hazaribagh at around 11 a.m.

The Maoist rebels first hurled bombs at their vehicle and later fired at them. While the sub inspector was killed, the two constables and the driver were wounded. The injured have been admitted to a Hazaribagh hospital, a police official said. The district headquarters is around 160 km from the state capital here.

The police have launched a search for the guerrillas.

Maoist rebels are active in 18 of the state’s 24 districts. As many as 614 civilians and 290 security personnel have died in Maoist-related violence since Jharkhand was carved out of Bihar in 2000.