Police in Odisha's Kandhamal district have completed the process of handing over the bodies of all six Maoists killed in recent encounters to their next of kin, marking a significant procedural conclusion to the operation.
Legal Procedures Completed for Final Two Bodies
On Tuesday, the Kandhamal police handed over the bodies of two more Maoists to their respective families after finishing all required legal formalities. The two deceased were women cadres killed in the exchange of fire with security forces in the district recently.
Subhrajit Biswal, the Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) of Phulbani Sadar, confirmed the development. He stated that the bodies were handed over after family members identified them at Phulbani.
Details of the Encounters and the Deceased
The encounters took place on December 24 and 25 at two separate locations within the district. On December 24, two rebels were neutralized in the Gumma forest area under the Belghar police station limits.
The following day, a more significant encounter in the Rambah forest led to the death of four Maoists. This group included Ganesh Uike, a central committee member of the banned CPI(Maoist) and the head of the outfit's Odisha unit.
The two women whose bodies were handed over on Tuesday were identified as Sima, also known as Kamli Kunjam, from Hodsapaaro in Bijapur district, Chhattisgarh, and Kawasi Mangl, alias Ankita, from Durmapara in Sukma district, Chhattisgarh.
Their family members traveled to Phulbani to claim the bodies. This follows the earlier handover of the bodies of the four other Maoists, including Uike, to their relatives. The other slain cadres were identified as Guddu Ram Telam, Lekham Hunga, and Ganga Madkama, all from Chhattisgarh.
Ganesh Uike's body was claimed by his brother and nephew on December 27, following the completion of the post-mortem examination.
A Humanitarian Gesture by Police
In a notable humanitarian act, the police provided assistance to some of the grieving relatives. Officers noted the impoverished condition of the families, who lacked adequate winter clothing.
"As a humanitarian gesture, we provided them blankets and some money for travel back to Chhattisgarh," a police officer involved in the process said. This assistance included winter clothes and monetary support for their return journey.
A Departure from Past Practice
Police officials highlighted that this marks the first instance in the district where the bodies of all Maoists killed in an encounter have been claimed by families.
"For the first time, we have handed over bodies of all slain Maoists in the district," an officer remarked. In previous encounters, very few claimants came forward to collect the bodies of deceased insurgents, often forcing the police to conduct the last rites following legal protocols.
The completion of this process closes a chapter on the late-December anti-Maoist operations in Kandhamal, underscoring both the continued security challenges in the region and a procedural shift in handling such incidents.
