Raipur: A prominent Congress leader, who had led a campaign against naxals, and his son were today killed after being chased by about 500 Maoists in Bijapur district of Chhattisgarh, police said.

Budhram Rana was chased in the paddy field and shot dead and his son was axed and then shot at and killed by about 500 Maoists at Musalur village, about 525 km from the state capital, Bijapur police sources told PTI by phone. The Naxalites raided the 400-populated Musalur village surrounding it to attack a contractor who was carrying out road and bridge construction work close to that village, police said.

At that time, Rana and his son reached the village from Bijapur town to check harvesting work on their paddy field and faced the Naxalites, they said. Seeing the Naxalites, both started running in different directions but the naxalites first caught the son and axed him and then shot him dead before chasing the senior Rana and gunning him down in the paddy field, police said.

Rana was in the hit list of rebels for leading the anti-naxal campaign in hyper naxal-infested Bijapur district in Bastar region of Chhattisgarh, police said. Rana, Bijapur district Congress leader, was the vice chairman of Bijapur block.

Source : PTI