Who is Nambala Keshav Rao aka Basavaraju? Top Maoist commander suspected to be killed in Chhattisgarh encounter
The Chhattisgarh government confirmed reports of the encounter between security forces and Naxalites in Narayanpur.
Deputy CM Vijay Sharma informed that more than 26 Naxalites were killed in the encounter that broke out in Narayanpur. According to PTI, Naxalites opened fire when teams of District Reserve Guards of police from four districts were out on an operation in the Abhujmad area following intelligence inputs about the presence of senior cadres of the Mad division of Maoists. A member of the District Reserve Guard (DRG), a unit of state police, was also killed in action while some others sustained injuries.
The encounter took place in the dense forests of Abhujmad on the tri-junction of Narayanpur-Bijapur-Dantewada districts, the senior police official said. The operation involving personnel of DRG from Narayanpur, Dantewada, Bijapur, and Kondagaon was launched two days ago 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 Guerilla Army) members, officials said.
According to reports, General Secretary of CPI (Maoist ) Nambala Keshav Rao, alias Basavaraju, who was in his late 60s, was among the slain Maoists, though police did not confirm it officially.
Who is Nambala Keshav Rao, alias Basavaraju?
Basavaraj took charge as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Maoist) in 2018 following the resignation of Muppala Lakshmana Rao, alias Ganapathy.
A native of Andhra Pradesh, Basavaraju is a BTech graduate from the Regional Engineering College in Warangal. According to HT, Basavaraju was camping in Abujhmaad for at least eight years.
With the latest encounter, 200 Naxalites have been killed in Chhattisgarh so far this year. Of them, 183 were eliminated in the Bastar division which includes districts of Bijapur, Narayanpur, Dantewada and Kondagaon.
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