A Maoist carrying a reward of Rs 25L on his head was among three ultras killed in an encounter with security forces in Chhattisgarh’s Dantewada district on Tuesday, police said. The gunfight took place at around 8 am in a forest along the border of Dantewada and Bijapur districts when a team of security personnel was out on an anti-Maoist operation, Superintendent of Police Gaurav Rai said.

Personnel belonging to the DRG and Bastar Fighters, both units of the state police, were involved in the operation launched on the basis of inputs about the presence of Maoists in forests of Girsapara, Nelgoda, Bodga, and Ikeli villages under Geedam police station limits. After the exchange of fire, bodies of three Maoists were recovered from the site.