Six Maoists were shot dead on Tuesday morning during an exchange of fire with security personnel in Andhra Pradesh’s Alluri Sitaramaraju district. The major encounter erupted along the Andhra Pradesh border, with security forces engaging Naxalites in the Alluri Sitaram district. Early reports said that several Naxalites have been killed in the exchange of fire, and inputs suggested that one of the casualties was dreaded Maoist commander Madvi Hidma, who carries a bounty of Rs 1 crore on his head.
There are also unverified claims that members of Hidma’s family, including his wife Raje alias Rajakka, may have been killed in the operation. However, authorities have not yet issued any official statement, and the encounter is believed to be ongoing. Security agencies are expected to release a formal confirmation once ground verification is complete.
Superintendent of Police Amit Bardar said the encounter unfolded in the Maredumilli mandal forests between 6.30 am and 7 am. “Six Maoists were killed in an encounter in Alluri district today,” he confirmed to PTI.
The deceased include four men and two women. Bardar noted that the operation was jointly carried out by different units of the police force. The clash adds to a series of confrontations in the district, a long-established hub of Maoist activity. Security teams are continuing combing operations to rule out any remaining threats in the area.
Who Is Madvi Hidma?
Born in 1981 in Sukma—then part of undivided Madhya Pradesh—Hidma rose rapidly within the CPI (Maoist), eventually taking command of a People’s Liberation Guerrilla Army battalion, as per NDTV. He became the youngest member of the Maoist Central Committee and the only tribal representative from Bastar in the organisation’s top leadership.
Hidma has long been associated with some of the most brutal Maoist offensives in the country. Among them are the 2010 Dantewada massacre that claimed the lives of 76 CRPF personnel, the 2013 Jhiram Ghati ambush in which 27 people—including senior Congress leaders—were killed, and the 2021 Sukma-Bijapur attack that left 22 security personnel dead.
(More details awaited)