RAIPUR: Two senior Maoists, members of the CPI (Maoist) central committee, were killed in a gunfight with security forces in Abhujmad area of Narayanpur district on Monday, police said. Both of them carried a bounty of ₹40 lakh each.
The deceased were identified as Raju Dada aka Katta Ramachandra Reddy (63) and Kosa Dada aka Kadri Satyanarayana Reddy (67), both natives of Karimnagar district in Telangana.
Inspector General of Police, Bastar Range, Sundarraj P, said their death was a “major blow” to the outlawed group.
Union home minister Amit Shah praised the security forces for scoring “another major victory”.
“In the Abujhmad region of Narayanpur along the Maharashtra-Chhattisgarh border, our forces eliminated two Central Committee Member Naxal leaders - Katta Ramachandra Reddy and Kadri Satyanarayan Reddy. Our security forces are systematically dismantling the top leadership of the Naxals, breaking the backbone of red terror,” said Shah in a post on X.
Police said Raju Dada, also known by aliases Gudsa Usendi, Vijay and Vikalp, had been in the armed outfit for over four decades and was currently a member of the Maoist central committee, the highest decision-making body of the banned organisation.
Kosa Dada, also known as Gopanna and Buchanna, a central committee member, was considered a key strategist of the outfit and served as the operations planner for the Dandakaranya Special Zonal Committee, where he had been active since the early 1990s.
{{/usCountry}}Kosa Dada, also known as Gopanna and Buchanna, a central committee member, was considered a key strategist of the outfit and served as the operations planner for the Dandakaranya Special Zonal Committee, where he had been active since the early 1990s.
{{/usCountry}}Both of them had been involved in major ambushes and attacks targeting security personnel across Bastar, police said.
The gunfight took place on Monday morning during a search operation conducted by security forces following inputs about the movement of Maoists in the Abhujmad forests along the Chhattisgarh–Maharashtra interstate border, a senior police officer said. There was intermittent gunfire between the two sides for several hours before the Maoists escaped, leaving the bodies of the two senior leaders.
Security forces also seized one AK-47 rifle, one INSAS rifle, one Under Barrel Grenade Launcher, Maoist literature and other daily-use items from the site.
Police said details of criminal records and rewards announced by other states and central agencies are being verified.
Sundarraj said the security forces were committed to effectively deal with the Maoist challenge and the remaining Maoists to shun violence.
“Despite the difficult terrain and adverse weather, police and security forces in Bastar remain committed in line with the vision of the Government of India, the Chhattisgarh government, and the aspirations of the people of Bastar,” he said.
“The Maoist movement is nearing its end. It is time for cadres and their leadership to shun violence and return to society by availing the benefits of the surrender and rehabilitation policy,” the top police officer in Chhattisgarh’s Bastar region, which has been a hotbed of Maoist activity for decades, said.
Monday’s development comes against the backdrop of a series of setbacks for the CPI (Maoist) in recent months, with several other central committee members being killed in operations across different states.
On September 11, security forces killed Modem Balakrishna alias Manoj, head of the Odisha State Committee and a central committee member, along with nine others in Chhattisgarh’s Gariaband district, Balakrishna carried a reward of nearly ₹1 crore.
On September 15, Sahadev Soren, another central committee member with a ₹1 crore bounty, was killed in an operation in Jharkhand’s Karando area, along with two other Maoists, Raghunath Hembram alias Chanchal and Birsen Ganjhu alias Ramkhelawan.
On June 5, Gautam alias Sudhakar, a central committee member carrying a reward of ₹40 lakh, was killed during an encounter with security forces in Bijapur district.
In Andhra Pradesh’s Alluri Sitharama Raju district, Gajarla Ravi alias Uday, also known as Ganesh, was among three Maoists killed in a Greyhounds operation. In January this year, Chalpathi alias Ramachandra Reddy Gari Pratap Reddy, also known as Appa Rao, who was chief of the Odisha State Committee and a central committee member, was killed in an encounter in Gariaband.
Police officials insist that the elimination of several central committee members has considerably weakened the CPI (Maoist), which is increasingly relying on its middle-rung cadres for leadership in the region.