Saturday, October 22, 2011

Maoist commander claims gunning down helicopter, Jharkhand police denies claim


From Jagran Post
22 Oct 2011
Did the Maoists gun down BSF chopper?
Did the Maoists gun down BSF chopper?
Ranchi: The reason behind the crash of BSF helicopter on the Ranchi-Khunti border - a stronghold of the Maoists – two days back remains to be a mystery.
Giving credence to the speculations of Maoists being behind the mishap, Maoist leader Kundan Pahan on Friday claimed to have gunned down the helicopter.
On Friday, an SMS reading “Maoist Jan Mukti Chhapamar Sena has gunned down the helicopter: Kundan Pahan” was sent to the media houses from a mobile number 9661973155.
On Wednesday, the crash killed three people including the pilot, co-pilot and a technician.
Kolad is said to be stronghold of Kundan Pahan. The message leaves several questions unanswered. Has Kundan himself sent the message or not? Do Maoists have anti-aircraft gun?
Meanwhile, the Jharkhand police have rubbished the claim.
DGP Gauri Shankar Rath said, “The naxal’s claim to gun down the helicopter is false. After a report from DGCA, the reason behind the incident would be clear.”
Special Branch IG, SN Pradhan said, “It is not possible to gun down the helicopter by automatic weapon. Only anti aircraft gun can target the helicopter.”
Imputing motive to the SMS, the intelligence sources said that since Kundan has been sidelined by the Maoists, it’s his ploy maintain his relevance by creating sensation.

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