Indian forces kill seven, including top Maoist leader, in Maharashtra operation
Mumbai: Indian forces killed seven people, including a senior Moaist leader, during an operation in Gadchiroli district in Maharashtra state.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the operation, launched near Phodewada village on the Narayanpur-Gadchiroli border, has been ongoing since February 3. Fourteen units of C-60, a special anti-Naxal force of the Gadchiroli Police, carried out the cordon and search operation, officially termed an anti-Naxal operation.
Officials said that among those killed was Prabhakar, a top Maoist leader from Kamareddy, Telangana, in charge of the Gadchiroli Division Committee, West Sub-Zonal Bureau, and ‘Company No. 10’. A reward of Rs 25 lakh had been announced for him. The identities of the remaining six killed are yet to be confirmed.
Police said the operation followed intelligence reports of surviving Company No. 10 cadres and an unknown Naxalite formation from Chhattisgarh. Three bodies were recovered on Thursday night, and four more on Friday.
Officials said that C-60 soldier Deepak Chinna Madavi (38) succumbed to bullet injuries sustained during the operation, while another soldier, Joga Madavi, is undergoing treatment in Gadchiroli.
Over the years, hundreds of tribal people, often labelled as Maoists or Naxals, have been killed during such operations in Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and other Indian states. Civil society groups and human rights organisations have repeatedly condemned these killings as extrajudicial “fake encounters,” arguing that they violate the right to life and due process, and undermine democratic principles and the rule of law.
