India, July 7 -- A top Maoist cadre, identified as Sodhi Kanna, deputy commander and sniper in the outlawed CPI (Maoist)'s armed unit-People's Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA) Battalion No. 1, in an encounter with security forces on Saturday.

The Chhattisgarh police on Monday said the encounter took place on Saturday in the dense forests of the Indravati National Park in Bijapur district, a well-known Maoist stronghold, where a joint team of security personnel had launched a large-scale operation on July 4.

Sodhi Kanna's body was recovered following a fierce gunbattle with the Maoists.

Bijapur superintendent of police (SP) Jitender Kumar Yadav described the operation as a major success in the fight against Left Wing Extremism.

"Sodhi ...