BJP leader among 5 killed by Chhattisgarh Naxals

A leader of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party was shot dead by suspected Maoists today while four villagers were killed by Naxals in another incident in Dantewada district of Chhattisgarh where a Special Police Officer and his wife were reported missing, police sources said.

Nandu Singh Chouhan, a former BJP President of Chhindgarh block, was shot dead by suspected Maoists near the block headquarters, about 440-km from the state capital, Dantewada police told PTI by phone.

In another incident, the Maoists killed four villagers in Ganglur area of Dantewada, they said.

Ten villagers had gone from Ganglur relief camp to their paddy fields when a group of armed Naxalites reached there and asked them to stop farming saying it has been `banned' by them, the sources said.

The ultras captured four of the villagers and slit them to death while others managed to escape, they said.

Meanwhile, a special police officer and his wife were reported missing since Monday in Bijapur police station area, police added.

Both Dantewada and Bijapur are hyper Naxal-infested districts in Bastar region of the state.