Ranchi, Aug. 28: In an apparent bid to save face, police today tried to explain that Special Auxiliary Police (SAP) jawans were unarmed as “they were not conducting any operation” when Naxalites attacked a convoy near Chormunda village under Netarhat police station area in Latehar yesterday.
The convoy of seven was escorting company commander Balbinder Singh who had arrived at Mahuadand from Shimla to a Netarhat camp.
“Arms are chiefly carried during police operations and usually a district superintendent of police is kept informed about such operations. In yesterday’s case no officers were informed,” said Rezi Dungdung, the inspector-general of Jharkhand Armed Police.
Moreover, police sources said the jawans were travelling in plain clothes, but Maoist intelligence network had the ambush planned well in advance.
A section of senior police officers, requesting anonymity, claimed that the jawans paid a price for lowering their guard in a rebel-hit region. “It is always expected that a jawan would be ready in a war zone. Areas such as Palamau and Bundu-Tamar are no less than a war zone,” he said.
Latehar superintendent of police Kuldeep Diwedy, however, played it safe and said the matter was under investigation.
“We would inform police headquarters about our findings soon,” he added.
SAP jawans are appointed on a contractual basis as a part of the state constabulary from retired armed forces.
In yesterday’s attack, SAP Subedar Chandru Pradhan was shot while two of his colleagues, Jasbir Singh and Darshan Singh, sustained serious injuries after a group of 50 guerrillas ambushed a police jeep late in the evening. All jawans were unarmed.
The attack occurred while the jeep was returning to SAP-1 base camp at Netarhat, also a proposed site for a jungle warfare school, with Balbinder Singh, who had earlier reached Mahuadand after a leave at Shimla. Besides Singh, there were seven SAP personnel, escorting their commander.
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