PLFI activist killed in encounter with police

A member of People's Liberation Front of India (PLFI) has been killed in an encounter with the police in Ramgarh district, a senior officer said Thursday.

Acting on a tip-off, a team of police officers raided a forest area near Chamaribera village in the district Wednesday night and confronted the PLFI activist and his accomplices, asking them to surrender, he said.

The rebels, however, opened fire at the officers, leading to a gun battle between the two sides, Superintendent of Police Nidhi Dwivedi told reporters here.

One member of the outlawed outfit, identified as Bajiram Mahto, was killed in the encounter, the SP said, adding that the rest escaped into the dense forest.

Mahato, a resident of Laiyo village in the district, served as the regional commander of the PLFI, a splinter group of the CPI(Maoist), he said.

He was involved in the murder of trade union leader Baleshwar Mahto, and abduction of Gola block pramukh (head) Jaleshwar Mahto, the SP added.