Stepping up violence ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, Maoist rebels on Tuesday triggered a powerful blast, killing a police constable and injuring five others in Bijapur district in tribal Bastar region of Chahttisgarh.

Police said the Naxalites had in fact targeted Bijapur district superintendent of police Ankit Garg, who along with security forces, was on proceeding towards Bhopalapattanam. The rebels, who were hiding in the forests, opened indiscriminate firing immediately after the blast which hit a pilot vehicle.

Constable Nand Kishore Sori died on the spot while constables Dauram Bhaskar, Mehru Netam, Mahesh Mandavi Firoz Khan and Mohan, a special police officer, were injured in the incident. The Naxalites fled the spot as the security forces fired in retaliation.

Communist Party of India (Maoist), an outlawed organisation, has circulated leaflets in the remote villages of South Bastar, asking people to boycott the elections. The Naxalites, who were lying low after the assembly elections in November 2008, have now stepped up their activities. Two days ago, a close relative of senior Congress leader Mahendra Karma was shot dead in Bastar.

Security forces, including the para-military forces, have been deployed in large numbers in Bastar region for the conduct of smooth polling on April 16. Security personnel from other states have been advised not to use vehicles in the remote areas and to go patrolling on foot in view of the possibility of landmine blasts, police sources said.