Maoists target ambulance

Suspected Maoists blew up an ambulance in Kandhamal district of Orissa late on Saturday, killing all its five occupants, including a three-year-old girl.

The ambulance was coming back from a government hospital in Berhampur after dropping a pregnant woman when the Maoists triggered a landmine blast on a hilly road near Brahmanigaon around 2 a.m., Kandhamal SP Praveen Kumar said.

Brahmanigaon is a Maoist-infested area where Azad, the man who killed Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati in August 2008, calls the shots.

The blast killed all five occupants on the spot and created a deep crater on the ground.

All the victims are Dalits and tribal Christians. They are Subhashree Digal (3), her mother Erina Digal, Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA) worker Sushanti Pradhan, Bunu Digal and driver Siman Mallick.

The SP said the landmine blast could have been a deliberate attack. “The ambulance must have had a blue beacon on its top. So how come the rebels did not see it?” he asked.

But police sources said the ambulance could have been targeted by mistake as the Maoists were actually looking for a deputy superintendent of police who had come to Brahmanigaon two days ago to investigate the killing of a contractor. The Maoists are yet to come out with any statement.

On Thursday, the Maoists had shot contractor Manoj Sahu at the crowded Brahmanigaon market. A bandh was called in Brahmanigaon on Saturday to protest the contractor’s killing.

The DSP was scheduled to travel back on that road on Saturday night, but deferred his visit.

Local officials said they were not sure if the ambulance had a blue beacon on top. Vehicles in the area normally do not sport any beacons after sunset as it could attract Maoists.

Local tribal leader Lambodar Kanhar said the Maoists had proved that they were just murderers. “I have been telling my fellow tribals time and again to steer clear of the Maoists and not give them shelter. If we help them, then the police would come after us branding us as informers,” Kanhar said.

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