NEW DELHI: At least seven Maoists, including two top leaders of the outlawed CPI (Maoist), have been killed in a series of encounters with security forces in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district over the past three days, police said on Saturday. The ongoing anti-Naxal operation is taking place inside the dense forest region of Indravati National Park.The latest casualties include two prominent figures: Central Committee Member Narasimha Chalam alias Sudhakar, and Bhaskar alias Mailarapu Adellu, a Special Zonal Committee (SZC) member of the Telangana State Committee (TSC) of the Maoists. Sudhakar carried a bounty of Rs 40 lakh, while Bhaskar had a combined reward of Rs 45 lakh announced by the governments of Chhattisgarh and Telangana.“So far, a total of 7 dead bodies of Maoist cadres have been recovered by security forces during the ongoing anti-Naxal operations in the National Park area of Bijapur district,” confirmed Inspector General of Police, Bastar Range, P Sundarraj, as quoted by news agency ANI. “These include the bodies of Central Committee Member Gautam alias Sudhakar and Telangana State Committee Member Bhaskar.”According to PTI, Saturday’s recovery of two bodies followed a gun battle, while three others were found after an encounter that took place during the intervening night of Friday and Saturday. The identities of five other Maoists killed, including two women, are yet to be ascertained.The operation was launched on June 4 following specific intelligence inputs about the presence of senior Maoist leaders, including Sudhakar, Bandi Prakash, and Pappa Rao, all associated with the Dandakaranya Special Zonal Committee (DKSZC). Personnel from the Chhattisgarh police’s Special Task Force (STF), District Reserve Guard (DRG), and CRPF’s elite CoBRA unit are involved in the joint operation.Security forces have also seized a significant cache of arms and ammunition from the encounter sites, including two AK-47 rifles and explosives, as per officials quoted by news agency PTI. Search and area domination efforts are continuing across the rugged terrain to neutralise any remaining Maoist presence.Some personnel sustained injuries during the operation due to snake bites, honeybee stings, dehydration, and other challenges associated with forest combat. “They are being provided with appropriate medical attention. Right now their condition is normal and out of danger,” Sundarraj said.This operation marks the third major blow to the Maoist hierarchy in Chhattisgarh in just over three weeks. On May 21, General Secretary of the CPI (Maoist) Nambala Keshav Rao alias Basavaraju, 70, was killed in a massive encounter in the Abujmarh forest area of Narayanpur district. A total of 26 other Maoists were neutralised in that action.Officials say the continuing operation in Bijapur is aimed at completely sanitising the Maoist-infested forest belt and uprooting the leadership network that has long directed armed insurgency in central India.
