In a replay of the daring raid in Bihar, hundreds of rebels Friday stormed a jail in Orissa in east India and freed about 40 prisoners after attacking a police station, a police camp and a government treasury and killing two policemen, according to Indo-Asian News Service.

Nearly 200 armed guerrillas entered into the R Udayagiri town in the southern district of Gajapati, some 60 km from the district headquarters of Paralakhemundi along with several of their supporters at about 5 a.m. local time, Orrisa police chief Suchit Das said.

The rebels, including some women guerrillas, cut telephone lines to the small town before their entry and simultaneously attacked the town police station, a camp of the state reserve armed police, local government treasury and the sub jail, the official said.

He said the police sub-inspector of the R Udayagiri police station and the jail chief had been taken hostage by the rebels who also managed to free about 40 prisoners, including their associates from the jail.

The guerrillas also set fire to records in the treasury and attacked the policemen, terrorizing the area for over two hours, he said.

The policemen and the reserve armed personnel retaliated, said Das, adding that in the over two-hour-long gun battle at least two policemen and two soldiers were killed and two other policemen sustained injuries.

Police suspect that three or four rebels were killed in the police firing, though the bodies have not been recovered and could have been taken away by their colleagues.

A senior district administrative official said on condition of anonymity that when the rebels struck, many of the top district officials including the district collector hid in their houses.

In November last year, hundreds of rebels stormed Jehanabad town in Bihar in north India, attacking the district jail, district court, police lines, police quarters, district armory and police stations and freeing more than 300 prisoners including their comrades.

Source: Xinhua