As many as five (5) Naxals have been gunned by Maharashtra Policeโ€™s C-60 commandos in an operation at Khobramenda forest area in Gadchiroli district.

The five Naxals were killed in an operation of the Maharashtra Police in the early hours of Monday.

โ€œFive Naxals were killed in the operation in Khobramenda forest area of Gadchiroli,โ€ Maharashtra Police officials informed.

โ€œThe anti-Naxals operation is still underway,โ€ police added.

According to the police, the Naxals have been planning to ambush security forces.

A huge cache of arms and ammunition has also been recovered by the police from the encounter site.

Also read: West Bengal Assembly elections: TMC asks EC to โ€˜refrainโ€™ from deploying armed forces from BJP-ruled States

On Saturday, the police in Gadchiroli district of Maharashtra had seized a rifle and three pressure cooker bombs which Naxals were allegedly planning to use to ambush security forces.

Acting on an information about the rebels gathering in large numbers in a forest against the backdrop of โ€œNaxal weekโ€ being observed by them, the Gadchiroli policeโ€™s C-60 commandos had conducted an anti-Naxal operation on Saturday in Hetalkasa forest area, police further informed.

Also read: Assam Assembly Election: How come BJP asks for votes in name of civilization

Around 60 to 70 ultras had opened fire on the C-60 commandos, a specialised anti-Naxal unit, following which the security personnel retaliated, the police said.

After an hour-long gun-battle, the rebels had managed to flee from the spot leaving behind their belongings, the police informed.