In a decisive breakthrough in India’s long-standing battle against Left Wing Extremism, security forces have killed top Maoist commander Nambala Keshav Rao, alias Basava Raju, during a high-intensity encounter in the Abujhmad region of Chhattisgarh. Rao was among the 26 Maoists gunned down in the joint operation, marking a historic blow to the CPI (Maoist) insurgency.
Who Was Basava Raju?
Basava Raju, in his 70s, was the General Secretary of the CPI (Maoist) and one of the most wanted Maoist leaders in India, with a bounty of over ₹1 crore on his head. An alumnus of the National Institute of Technology (NIT), Warangal—formerly REC—Raju was not only academically accomplished but also notorious for his military expertise, especially in handling and deploying IEDs in guerrilla ambushes.
Raju had succeeded Ganapathy (Muppala Lakshman Rao) as CPI (Maoist) chief in 2018. He was believed to have strong connections with international insurgent groups like the LTTE and was deeply involved in Maoist activities across Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, and Chhattisgarh.
Mastermind of Deadliest Attacks
Raju masterminded some of the most brutal Maoist attacks in India’s recent history:
- The 2010 Chintalnar massacre in Dantewada, where 76 CRPF personnel were ambushed and killed.
- The 2013 Jhiram Ghati attack, where a Congress convoy was ambushed and several top political leaders were stabbed and shot dead.
- The 2018 assassination of Araku TDP MLA Kidari Sarveswara Rao and ex-MLA Siveri Soma, attributed directly to his planning.
Before becoming a full-time Maoist, Raju was a kabaddi player during his school and junior college days in Andhra Pradesh’s Srikakulam district, where he was first drawn toward left-wing ideology in the 1980s through the CPI(ML) People’s War Group.
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Inside the Abujhmad Encounter
The deadly encounter unfolded in Abujhmad, an unsurveyed forested expanse larger than the state of Goa, stretching across Narayanpur, Bijapur, Dantewada, Kanker, and parts of Gadchiroli in Maharashtra.
Based on precise intelligence inputs about a top Maoist leader’s presence in the area, the District Reserve Guard (DRG) from four Chhattisgarh districts—Narayanpur, Dantewada, Bijapur, and Kondagaon—launched a targeted operation.
Officials confirmed that among the 26 dead insurgents, several were high-ranking operatives from the Maoist hierarchy. However, Basava Raju’s death is considered the most strategic victory, effectively decapitating the insurgency’s central leadership.
This encounter comes just weeks after the conclusion of Operation Black Forest, a 21-day anti-Naxal mission on the Chhattisgarh-Telangana border, which saw 31 Maoists killed, including key members of Battalion 1 of the People’s Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA).
National Impact and Official Response
Security analysts believe that Raju’s death will lead to temporary demoralisation in Maoist ranks and disruption of command chains within the CPI (Maoist). A senior intelligence officer said, “This is bigger than any single tactical victory. Basava Raju’s death is a psychological and operational disruption for the Maoist ecosystem.”
Union Home Minister Amit Shah is expected to issue a statement soon, commending the forces involved and possibly laying out a new counter-insurgency roadmap in light of the evolving Maoist threat.
