Security forces in Chhattisgarh’s Narayanpur district have neutralised two high-profile Maoist leaders, both carrying bounties of Rs 40 lakh each, in a carefully planned forest operation, officials said on Monday. The gunfight unfolded in the dense forests of Abhujmaad, near the Maharashtra border, when police and security personnel launched a search operation based on intelligence regarding the movement of senior Maoist cadres, Narayanpur Superintendent of Police Robinson Guria told reporters.
“The operation resulted in an intermittent exchange of fire that lasted several hours before the bodies of the two male cadres were recovered,” he said, as per news agency PTI.
Security forces seized an AK-47 rifle, an INSAS rifle, a barrel grenade launcher (BGL), a substantial stockpile of explosives, Maoist literature, and other materials from the site, Guria added.
The deceased were identified as Raju Dada, also known as Katta Ramachandra Reddy (63), and Kosa Dada, also known as Kadari Satyanarayana Reddy (67), both members of the Central Committee of the banned Communist Party of India (Maoists).
Originating from Karimnagar in Telangana, they were reportedly active in the ‘Dandakaranya Special Zonal Committee’, the wing overseeing Maoist operations in the Bastar region, for over three decades. Authorities said they were involved in several violent incidents in Bastar that resulted in the deaths of security personnel and civilians.
Raju Dada was also known by aliases Gudsa Usendi, Vijay, and Vikalp, while Kosa Dada was referred to as Gopanna and Buchanna. Both carried a Rs 40 lakh bounty in Chhattisgarh. “Details regarding criminal records and rewards announced by other states and agencies are being collected,” Guria noted.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah Hails ‘Major Victory’
Union Home Minister Amit Shah took to X to laud the operation, stating: “Today, our security forces have achieved another major victory against the Naxalites. In the Abujhmad region of Narayanpur along the Maharashtra-Chhattisgarh border, our forces eliminated two Central Committee Member Naxal leaders – Katta Ramchandra Reddy and Kadri Satyanarayan.”
Shah has repeatedly asserted that Naxalism will be eradicated from the country by March 31 next year, according to reports.
Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range) Sundarraj P described the action as a severe blow to the banned Maoist organisation. “Despite difficult terrain and adverse weather, police and security forces in Bastar remain steadfast in their commitment, working in line with the vision of the Union and Chhattisgarh governments as well as the aspirations of the people of Bastar,” he said, as quoted by PTI.
He also urged Maoist cadres to abandon violence and return to mainstream life, taking advantage of government surrender and rehabilitation schemes.
With this latest encounter, 249 Naxalites have been killed across Chhattisgarh so far this year. Of these, 220 were eliminated in the Bastar division, while 27 others were killed in Gariaband district, part of the Raipur division. Two additional cadres were neutralised in Mohla-Manpur-Ambagarh Chowki district of the Durg division.
Earlier this month, on September 11, ten Naxalites—including Central Committee Member Modem Balakrishna—were killed in a separate encounter in Gariaband district, highlighting continued pressure on the outlawed outfit.
