Bengaluru: It’s bad news for the state of Karnataka as it has lost a brave son in an ambush in the jungles of Bijapur, Chhattisgarh, on Friday, June 29.

ASI Mahadev Patil, who was from Kalaburagi, is the officer from Karnataka who attained martyrdom.

The other two are ASI Madan Pal and head constable Saji. They were in the lead on their bikes, when around 25 Maoists, who were waiting for them, fired at them.

Apart from the three personnel, a 14-year-old girl too lost her life while another girl was severely injured. The girls were travelling in the vehicle when the attack took place.

DIG (Anti-Maoist Operations) P Sundarraj said: “A joint team of 199 Battalion of CRPF and Chhattisgarh Police was on an area domination exercise in the jungles near Bhairamgarh when it came under attack at 10.30 am near a culvert.”

Times of India quoted the DIG additionally, “There were many bullet marks on the vehicle. It was a narrow escape for other villagers.”

After the attack, the Maoists escaped with weapons of the slain jawans.

Chhattisgarh Governor Anandiben Patel has expressed her condolences over the deaths.

In the last ten days alone, Maoists have struck three times, with a view to unleashing terror on the villagers. While two villagers were hacked to death on the suspicion of being police informers and one police constable was killed right in front of his own family members, a Samajwadi party leader Santosh Punem was abducted and killed on June 20.