Naxals torch bus near Agumbe

Armed Maoists intercepted a Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) bus near Agumbe in Karnataka’s Shimoga district on Sunday and set fire to the vehicle after directing the passengers and the crew to alight.

The bus, which was on its way to Bangalore from Agumbe, was halted by a group of people at Gubbiga, around 7 kms from Agumbe. The driver of the bus Eeranna Patel, suspecting them to be passengers, stopped the vehicle.

Soon, the gang, which included two women, surrounded the bus and asked the driver, conductor and a few passengers to alight from the vehicle. Next, the Maoists, who were wearing masks and carrying guns, broke open the fuel tank with the help of a rod. Collecting the diesel from the tank, they sprayed it all over the bus and set it on fire.

The armed naxalites told the frightened bus crew and passengers that they had burnt the bus to avenge the killing of senior Maoist leader Raju Mouli in a police encounter in Andhra Pradesh. The naxalites also threw pamphlets at the spot that condemned the killing of Raju Mouli in fake encounter.

Within minutes of setting the bus on fire, the Maoists disappeared into the adjoining forests.

After receiving information about the strike, personnel from Anti Naxal Force rushed to the spot and began combing operations in the surrounding forests.

Deputy Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa, who also hails from Shimoga district, told reporters that the Government will not only intensify combing operations in the forests, but also provide armed security to buses passing through naxal-infested areas in the State.