Basavaraju, backbone of Maoist movement, killed in Bastar Op: Amit Shah

A veteran of the Maoist movement since the 1970s, Basavaraju is among the most elusive Maoist leaders in the country

Raipur: General secretary of CPI (Maoist) Nambala Keshav Rao alias Basavaraju, was killed in a gunfight with security forces in Chhattisgarh's Abujhmad forests, Union home minister Amit Shah said.

Union home minister Amit Shah said Nambala Keshav Rao, alias Basavaraju, the general secretary of CPI-Maoist, was the “backbone” of the Maoist movement.

Police said Basavaraju was among the 27 Maoists killed in a gun battle with security forces in Chhattisgarh’s Bastar region on Wednesday.

Shah, who confirmed that Basavaraju had been killed in the operation, said he was the “backbone” of the Maoist movement.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he was proud of the security forces for the “remarkable success”. “Our Government is committed to eliminating the menace of Maoism and ensuring a life of peace and progress for our people,” he said in a post on X, citing Shah's announcement.

In his post on X, the home minister described Basavaraju's death as “a landmark achievement in the battle to eliminate Naxalism”.

"Today, in an operation in Narayanpur, Chhattisgarh, our security forces have neutralized 27 dreaded Maoists, including Nambala Keshav Rao, alias Basavaraju, the general secretary of CPI-Maoist, topmost leader, and the backbone of the Naxal movement,” Shah said.

“This is the first time in three decades of Bharat's battle against Naxalism that a general secretary-ranked leader has been neutralized by our forces. I applaud our brave security forces and agencies for this major breakthrough,” he said.

Sharing details, he said that after the completion of Operation Black Forest, 54 Naxalites have been arrested and 84 Naxalites have surrendered in Chhattisgarh, Telangana, and Maharashtra.

“The Modi government is resolved to eliminate Naxalism before the 31st of March 2026,” Shah said.

“The operation has been going on for the last 72 hours. More than 26 Maoists were killed in the encounter on Wednesday,” state home minister Vijay Sharma said

Basavaraju,71, was appointed the new general secretary of the banned Communist Party of India (Maoist) in 2018

A veteran of the Maoist movement since the 1970s, Basavaraju is among the most elusive Maoist leaders in the country and has a reward of ₹1.5 crore on his head.

A native of Jiyannapeta village in the Srikakulam district of Andhra Pradesh, Basavaraju is a BTech graduate from the Regional Engineering College in Warangal. Over the years, he has used multiple aliases, including Ganganna, Prakash, Krishna, Vijay, Darapu Narasimha Reddy, and Narasimha.

Law enforcement agencies do not have his recent photograph and investigations have revealed that he owns no property in his hometown, which he left in the late 1970s. His primary areas of operation are reported to be Chhattisgarh, Telangana, and parts of Maharashtra.

He played a crucial role in the formation of the Communist Party of India Marxist-Leninist People’s War (CPIMLPW) in Andhra Pradesh in 1980.

In 1987, Basavaraju, along with other senior Maoist leaders such as Ganapathy and the late Kishanji, is believed to have received training in ambush tactics and explosives from former Tamil rebels in the forests of Abujhmad , Bastar.

His rise within the party ranks continued in 1992, when he was elected to the central committee of CPIMLPW. Later, with the 2004 merger of CPIMLPW and the Maoist Communist Centre of India (MCCI) to form CPI (Maoist), Basavaraju was appointed secretary of the Central Military Commission.

According to sources, Basavaraju was camping in Abujhmaad for at least eight years.