Saturday, April 29 2006 11:31 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Patna: Nearly 200 naxalites of the banned CPI (Maoist) descended on Jandaha town in Bihar's Vaishali district past midnight, attacked the local police station and looted a bank after wounding two chowkidars, a senior police official said.

DIG (Tirhut range) Gupteshwar Pandey said Jandaha town, about 60 km from the state capital, reverberated with sounds of gunfire as heavily armed group of naxalites first opened a barrage of fire on the police station to engage the police personnel, while another headed for the Canara bank branch located in the main market.

Though no police personnel was injured in the exchangeof fire at the police station, two village chowkidars received gunshot injuries. However, they were reportedly out of danger.

The naxalites then broke open the locks of the main entrance of the bank and the cash chest and looted unspecifiedamount of money, Pandey said.

He said the Maoist rebels used loudspeakers to warn the people against venturing out of their homes during the operation saying they had nothing against the public.

It is for the first time in the state that the naxalites have looted a bank in the dead of the night.

After nearly an hour and half firing has stopped in the town, the DIG said, adding the Superintendent of Police of Vaishali Preeta Verma and the special task force personnel have rushed to the spot.

Police in neighbouring Muzaffarpur and Samastipur districts have been alerted to look for the retreating naxalites, he said.