Home Minister Amit Shah says Nambala Keshav Rao, alias Basavaraju, is among 27 rebels killed in an operation in Chhattisgarh state.
Indian forces have killed the Maoist rebel chief and dozens of other fighters, the country’s home minister says, calling it a decisive blow in a decades-long conflict.
India has been waging an all-out offensive against the last remaining groups of the Naxalite rebellion, a far-left Maoist-inspired fighting movement that began in 1967.
Home Affairs Minister Amit Shah announced on Wednesday that Nambala Keshav Rao, alias Basavaraju, was among 27 rebels killed by security forces in central India’s Chhattisgarh state.
Shah identified Rao as the general-secretary of the banned Communist Party of India-Maoist group and the “topmost leader and the backbone” of the Naxal movement.
“This is the first time in three decades of Bharat’s [India’s] battle against Naxalism that a general-secretary-ranked leader has been neutralised by our forces,” he said.
“I applaud our brave security forces and agencies for this major breakthrough.”
Shah said that in wider follow-up operations, 54 people had been arrested and a further 84 accused Naxalites had surrendered in the states of Chhattisgarh, Telangana and Maharashtra.
Senior state police official Vivekanand Sinha said a gun battle took place after intelligence reports indicated the presence of “top Maoist leaders” in the area.
A police commando also died during the battle, local police official P Sundarraj said.
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai said the operations were mainly carried out by the District Reserve Guard special police force.
“I salute their bravery. We have been appealing to Maoists to surrender. There is no need to keep repeating it,” Sai was quoted by The Times of India as saying.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he was “proud of our forces for this remarkable success”, adding that the government was “committed to eliminating the menace of Maoism and ensuring a life of peace and progress”.
The rebel movement was named after the village of Naxalbari in the foothills of the Himalayas, where it began nearly six decades ago.
More than 12,000 rebels, soldiers and civilians have died since a handful of villagers rose up against their feudal lords there in 1967.
At its peak in the mid-2000s, the rebellion controlled nearly a third of the country and had an estimated 15,000 to 20,000 fighters.
According to government data, since last year, Indian soldiers have killed at least 400 rebels.
Last week, Indian security forces said they killed 31 Maoist rebels in what the government described as the “biggest operation against Naxalism” in an area on the border of Chhattisgarh and Telangana.
Recently, 11 people identified as rebels were also killed by Indian troops in the states of Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand.
In February, security forces killed 11 fighters and killed a further 30 in March.
Last month, the Maoists said they were ready for dialogue if the government withdrew security forces and halted the ongoing offensive.
“In the interests of the people, our party is always ready for peace talks,” the top body of the Maoists said in a statement.
