India police: 12 rebels killed in rebel gunbattle

PATNA, India (AP) — A fierce gunbattle between two rival Maoist rebel groups has left at least a dozen rebels dead in the eastern Indian state of Jharkhand, police said Friday.

Police recovered the bodies of 12 rebels in the state's Chatra district after the two-day gunfight ended Friday afternoon, said Rajiv Kumar, Jharkhand's director general of police.

The gunbattle between rebels of the Communist Party of India (Maoist) and a breakaway group began late Wednesday.

Police identified six of the dead as top Maoist rebel leaders, Kumar said.

The rebels, who say they're inspired by Chinese revolutionary leader Mao Zedong, have been fighting the government for more than four decades, demanding land and jobs for landless farmers and the poor.

The insurgents — who often target police, soldiers and government officials who they see as representatives of the state — have tapped into anger among the rural poor over being left out of the country's economic gains.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has often described the Maoist rebels as India's biggest internal security challenge. The rebels are now present in 20 of India's 28 states and have an estimated 10,000 to 20,000 fighters, according to the Home Ministry.

However, as their numbers have grown, several rebel groups have broken away to form breakaway factions. Fights often break out among them for territorial control in Jharkhand, where several coal mines are located.

Communist Party of India (Maoist) leaders accuse the leaders of the breakaway groups of siphoning off money that they extort from mine owners.