Mumbai:
Fifty commandos and two Mi-17 helicopters were rushed to Gadchiroli in Maharashtra, to airlift election officials who were sent there to supervise voting and who are now in a polling booth surrounded by Naxals.
Thirty election officials were in the polling booth at Khamtala Village. Gadchiroli saw the worst-ever Naxal attack in Maharashtra, when 18 policemen were massacred here last week.
Elections were held here with the Naxal threat looming large. But a relatively high 68 per cent voters cast their vote in the district, defying a Maoist call for boycott of the elections.
Voting in 22 of 832 booths in Gadchiroli has been postponed to October 15 after landmines were found in the area and polling officials could not reach polling booths in time. Naxal firing was also reported from Bonde village, resulting in a clash with security forces.
Details are awaited.