Maharashtra: Naxals trigger IED blast while voting underway; no casualties reported

As the people on Thursday turned up to vote in the first phase of Lok Sabha elections in Maharashtra, Naxals triggered an IED blast near a polling booth in Etapalli in Gadchiroli district, police said.

Voting was underway when the Improvised Explosive Device (IED) went off. No casualties have been reported in the incident.

Gadchiroli is among the seven seats where polling is underway during the first phase of elections in Maharashtra.

In a similar incident, a CRPF personnel sustained critical injuries after the Naxals on Wednesday attacked a CRPF convoy of the191 battalion in Gatta area of Ettapalli, which was out on polling duty.

On April 9, a BJP MLA and four others were killed when Naxals triggered an IED blast and attacked their convoy in Chhattisgarh's Dantewada district, which falls under Bastar Lok Sabha constituency.

Chhattisgarh will witness polls in the first three phases of General election - April 11, 18 and 23 - for its 11 parliamentary constituencies.