WB: Maoists raid police station, shoot two cops dead

In a first such operation in West Bengal [ Images ], Maoists on Tuesday raided a police station, shot dead two police officers and kidnapped the officer-in-charge in West Midnapore district, where they also looted a bank.

The Maoists numbering around 50, including women, arrived in two groups on motorcycles and headed for the police station and the State Bank of India branch nearby, police said.

At the police station, they opened fire killing the second officer Dibakar Bhattacharya and kidnapped officer-in- charge Atindranath Dutta and an assistant sub-inspector Swapan Roy, sources said.

The body of Roy was later found from a swamp some distance away, they said, adding the Maoists took away all the arms and ammunition at the police station.

Maoist leader Kishenji claimed responsibility for the attack and the kidnap of the officer and warned police to stay put or he would be beheaded.

This came close on the beheading by Maoists of inspector Francis Induwar on October six in Jharkhand's Khunti district after his kidnap on October 30 and the killing of 17 policemen at Gadchiroli in Maharashtra [ Images ] on October 8.