Raipur, Nov 30 : As the curtains were down for the first phase of the Jharkhand elections and the security personnel were busy in protecting the state borders, a forest official in the remote Indagaon range along the Orissa –Chattisgarh border went down fighting the Maoists for the cause of protecting the environment.

The incident has exposed Maoists claims that they are fighting to preserve the forests in the interest of tribals. Villagers of the area are now aware that their objective is to ensure their rule in the forests, which they want to exploit for their purposes.

On Friday, on receiving information that smugglers are taking logs from the interior forests, Deputy Ranger of Indgaon forests, Gokul Tanday, along with two of his personnel went to the spot, which was deep inside the forest along Orissa border.

In this tough terrain Tandy and his men encountered the Naxalites. The Naxals asked Tandy to come with them and forced others to return back.

Next day the police recovered the body of Gokul Tandy body from the forest. The body had clear marks of injuries from sharp weapons, indicating brutal attack on him by Naxals.

The Maosits involvement with the forest mafia and smuggling the rich natural wealth has also become a big cause of worry for the tribals, who are known for worshiping Mother Nature. (ANI)