Since the policemen were in unmarked vehicles — a Toyota Qualis and a Tata Sumo— they did not arouse suspicion in the militants. They followed the car and when it neared the barricade, they shouted at the Ambassador driver to stop.

One of the militants hurled a grenade which didn’t explode while the others opened fire. The policemen returned fire and managed to kill all three.

“The whole incident lasted for 10-12 minutes. Our men were wearing bullet-proof jackets, so they were saved,” Yadav told reporters. The police, he said, fired 63 rounds.

A lot of ammunition, including a 5.6 kg ready-to-use improvised explosive device (IED), a diary, 12 hand grenades, 3 AKM-47 rifles, nine magazines and some belt straps were recovered from the spot.

“The police had been expecting an attack on the RSS headquarters ever since last year. But on May 29, there was a specific threat perception report. We had given our men special training to foil such attacks,” Yadav said.

Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh announced a reward of Rs 10 lakh to the Nagpur police for the successful operation.

Yadav rejected reports that there were more militants and some in police custody. He declined to divulge details about the identity of the militants or their organisation. “I can’t share anything about it with you at this stage,” he said, adding “no linkage has been established so far to the arms seizures in Aurangabad and Malegaon.”

Asked about VHP leader Pravin Togadia questioning the encounter, Yadav said, “I don’t feel like reacting to such allegations. My men have done this by putting their lives in danger.”

... contd.