Dantewada naxal attack is poll related and took place despite a high alert

Dantewada, Oct 30: In a horrific incident, two policemen and a cameraman from national broadcaster, Doordarshan were killed in a naxal attack at Dantewada, Chhattisgarh.

While the probe into the incident got underway, preliminary investigations say that the incident could be directly linked to the elections in the state. The first phase of the polls will be held in the state on November 12 covering 18 constituencies across the eight Naxal-affected districts namely Bastar, Kanker Sukma, Bijapur, Dantewada, Narayanpur, Kondagaon and Rajnandgaon. The remaining 72 constituencies will go to polls on November 20, while counting will be held on December 11.

Intelligence Bureau officials tell OneIndia that the incident prima facie appears to be directly linked to the elections. The naxalites had warned the people of the state to boycott the elections, failing which there would be violence. There were inputs suggesting that the naxalites would try and target the poll bound state, the officer also informed.

Following the incident a high alert has been issued with the IB warning of more such attacks in the run up to the elections. The alerts have been issued specifically in the Bastar, Kanker Sukma, Bijapur, Dantewada, Narayanpur, Kondagaon and Rajnandgaon districts, where the naxal menace is high.

The Doordarshan crew was in Dantewada for the election coverage. They had interviewed SP Abhishek Pallav in the morning and were moving towards Nirbhaya when the incident occurred on the Aranpur-Dantewada road.