Follow Us;Resize=(820,462) "IG Bastar P Sundarraj inspects bodies of 27 naxals that were neutralised by DRF in Abujhmad's encounter")
Top Maoist leader Basavaraju and 26 others, including 12 women, were recently killed in a major anti-Naxal operation by security forces in Chhattisgarh's Abhujmad region.
In one of the most significant operations against Naxalites in recent years, security forces killed 27 Maoists — including 12 women — during an encounter in the forested Abhujmad area along the Bijapur-Narayanpur inter-district border in Chhattisgarh on Wednesday. Among those gunned down was top Maoist leader Nambala Keshav Rao alias Basavaraju, general secretary of the outlawed Communist Party of India (Maoist).
Two jawans of the District Reserve Guard (DRG) of the Chhattisgarh police also lost their lives during the fierce gunbattle.
‘Dreaded Cadres’ with Rs 3.33 Crore Cumulative Bounty
Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range) Sundarraj P was quoted as saying in a PTI report that the Maoists killed in the operation were "dreaded cadres" who collectively carried a bounty of Rs 3.33 crore in the state.
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“Of the killed cadres, one was identified on Wednesday as Basavaraju (70), who carried a reward of Rs 1 crore in Chhattisgarh. The identities of the remaining were established on Thursday,” Sundarraj said.
Intelligence-Led Multi-District Operation
The anti-Naxal operation was launched on May 18 based on intelligence inputs regarding the presence of senior Maoist leadership in the region.
The IG said, “The operation involving personnel of DRG from Narayanpur, Dantewada, Bijapur, and Kondagaon districts was launched on May 18 based on intelligence inputs about the presence of Central Committee and Politburo members of the Maoists, as well as senior Maad Division cadres and PLGA (Peoples’ Liberation Guerrilla Army) members.”
The encounter began on Wednesday morning after a three-day-long search.
High-Ranking Maoists Among the Dead The list of Maoists killed includes Jangu Naveen, a Dandakaranya Special Zonal Committee member with a bounty of Rs 25 lakh, and four Company Party Committee Members (CYPCM): Sangeeta (35), Bhumika (35), Somli (30), and Roshan alias Tipu (35), each carrying a Rs 10 lakh reward.
“The remaining 21 cadres, comprising three platoon party committee members and 18 members of PLGA company no. 7, carried a reward of Rs 8 lakh each on their heads,” Sundarraj said.
Three of the deceased cadres were from Telangana, and two were from Andhra Pradesh.
Large Cache of Arms and Explosives Recovered
The security forces seized a significant quantity of weapons from the encounter site.
“Three AK-47 rifles, four Self Loading Rifle (SLR), six Insas rifles, one carbine, six .303 rifles, one Barrel Grenade Launcher (BGL), two rocket launchers, two 12 bore guns, one country made pistol, two muzzle loading guns and a huge cache of explosives were recovered from the encounter site," the IG said.
Basavaraju: Mastermind of Major Maoist Attacks
Basavaraju, also known by aliases such as Gaganna, BR Dada, Prakash, Krishna, and Darapu Narsingh Reddy, was one of the most senior Maoist leaders. A resident of Jiyannapeta village in Srikakulam district, Andhra Pradesh, he held a B.Tech degree from the then Regional Engineering College, Warangal.
Basavaraju joined the Maoist movement in the 1970s and became the general secretary of CPI (Maoist) in 2018, succeeding Muppala Lakshmana Rao alias Ganapathy.
“Basavaraju also carried a reward of Rs 1 crore declared by the Union Home Ministry, Rs 50 lakh by the National Investigation Agency, and Rs 25 lakh each by the Andhra Pradesh and Odisha governments. It is estimated that he carried a total bounty of Rs 10 crore in all LWE-affected states in the country. Details about it are being collected," said the IG.
He was a founding member of the Maoist central committee, a politburo member, and head of the central military commission of the CPI (Maoist).
Linked to Major Maoist Attacks
According to the IG, Basavaraju was a key figure behind several major attacks over the years:
- 2004 Koraput armoury loot (Odisha): 1,000 firearms looted, 3 lives lost.
- 2005 Jehanabad jailbreak (Bihar): 389 prisoners escaped.
- 2010 Dantewada massacre (Chhattisgarh): 76 CRPF personnel killed.
- 2013 Jhiram Ghati attack (Bastar): 27 killed, including senior Congress leaders.
- 2018 Andhra Pradesh: Involved in the killing of an MLA.
“Security forces have inflicted a major blow to Maoists with his killing,” Sundarraj added.
