PATNA, India — Suspected Maoist rebels have shot and killed three policemen and two private security guards in an attack on a private construction company complex in eastern India, police said Thursday.

The more than 200 suspected rebels also wounded seven police officers, two of them seriously in the attack Wednesday, according to Abhayanand, Bihar state's top police officer who uses only one name.

The attack took place area near Aurangabad, a town nearly 165 kilometers (105 miles) south of Patna, the state capital. It's a known stronghold of Maoist rebels who have been fighting in several Indian states for more than 40 years, and claim inspiration from Chinese revolutionary leader Mao Zedong.

They demand land and jobs for poor tribal communities that they say are ignored by the government.