4 of 13 slain Maoists identified, NIA team in Malkangiri

A day after 13 Maoists were killed in an encounter with security forces in Malkangiri district, four of them were identified today even as a team of National Investigative Agency (NIA) arrived here to probe the incident, police said.
After being summoned by the police, over 25 persons including women and village heads of Tekguda, Badigata and Madigata under Kalimela police station came here to identify the bodies, Malkangiri Superintendent of Police Akhileswar Singh said.
They identified Rama Khurani, Mangala Padiami, Era Padiami and Rama Kabasi, who belonged to Madigata village, Singh said.
However, the identified bodies would be handed over to their families only after thorough verification and completion of investigation, he said.

Stating that efforts were on to establish the identity of other bodies including that of a woman, he said the bodies would be kept in the morgue till tomorrow and if no one came forward for the purpose the police would cremate them adhering to due procedure.
Meanwhile, the district, considered as a Maoist den, has turned into a fortress with investigative teams making a beeline. A team of NIA, now investigating the Maoist attack on a convoy of Congress leaders at Darbha in May this year in adjoining Chhattisgarh, arrived here today to further inquire into the incident.
Similarly, a team of SIB from Andhra Pradesh and a police team from Chhattisgarh arrived in the district to collect more information about the Maoists, the sources said.