Jawan killed in Bijapur Naxal attack was about to become father after 19 years of marriage

One of the CRPF jawans, who lost his life in the deadly encounter with Naxals in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur, was about to become a father after 19 years of his marriage.

Kishore Endrik, who lost his life during the clash with Naxals that broke out on Saturday, saved his brother Hemant who was also fighting with the Naxals in a different group.

Kishore -- who belonged to Cherpal Gram Panchayat in Bijapur -- had married Rinki in 2002, informed the nephew of the deceased jawan. Rinki is currently four months pregnant.

A large number of people attended the last rites of Kishore on Sunday which were performed by his brother.

At least 22 security personnel lost their lives while 31 sustained injuries in an encounter that broke out between security forces and Naxals along the Sukma-Bijapur border on Saturday after a party of jawans was ambushed by Naxals near Jonnaguda village.

Director-General of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) Kuldiep Singh on Sunday said that there was absolutely no intelligence or operational failure in the operation.

However, reacting to Singh's comment, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said this meant that the operation was poorly designed and incompetently executed.

"If there was no intelligence failure then a 1:1 death ratio means it was a poorly designed and incompetently executed operation," Gandhi tweeted tagging a news clipping of CRPF DG's "no operational and intelligence failure" remark.

"Our Jawans are not cannon fodder to be martyred at will," he added.

( With inputs from ANI )