A 45-year-old local journalist was today axed to death by a group of armed Naxals in Bijapur district of Chhattishgarh, police said.
A small action team of Maoists attacked scribe Sai Reddy this afternoon in Basaguda police station limits of the district, killing him, Bijapur Deputy Superintendent of Police Sukhnandan Rathore told PTI. Reddy, a reporter with 'Deshbandhu', a Hindi daily, was staying in Bijapur for the last two years after leaving his native place Basaguda, around 450 kms from Raipur, the DSP said.
Today, he went to Basaguda to meet his relatives. When he was visiting the market place in the village, around ten ultras suddenly attacked him with axe. They hit Reddy on his head and throat several times and fled from the spot leaving him in a pool of blood, the DSP said.
The victim sustained severe injuries in his throat and head. He died on his way to Bijapur hospital, he added. According to police sources, Reddy was actively covering Naxal-affected areas for the past around 20 years and was a target.
In February this year, another local journalist Nemi Chand Jain was killed by Naxals in Tongpal police station area of Sukma district in South Bastar. Maoists are observing Peoples' Liberation of Guerrilla Army (PLGA) week from December 2-8 in memory of their slain leaders during which they organise various programmes to spread their propaganda, besides recruiting new youths in their fold.
