Amit Shah Confirms Basavaraju, Maoist Leader and Key Figure, Killed in Bastar Operation

Nambala Keshav Rao, also known as Basavaraju, the general secretary of CPI (Maoist), was killed in a gun battle with security forces in the forests of Abujhmad, Chhattisgarh, Union Home Minister Amit Shah confirmed. Basavaraju, one of the most prominent and elusive leaders of the Maoist movement, was among the 27 Maoists killed during the operation in Bastar region on Wednesday.

Shah hailed the operation as a major success, calling Basavaraju the “backbone” of the Maoist movement. He described the death as a significant achievement in the ongoing fight against Naxalism, noting that it was the first time in three decades that a general secretary-ranked leader of the CPI (Maoist) had been neutralized. Shah praised the security forces for their bravery and dedication in bringing down such a high-profile leader.

Expressing pride in their, Prime Minister Narendra Modi also congratulated the security forces, "remarkable success." He reiterated the government’s commitment to eradicating Maoism and ensuring peace and progress for the people of India.

In a statement on X, Shah shared details of the operation, revealing that in addition to Basavaraju, 26 other Maoists were killed. He also noted that following Operation Black Forest, 54 Naxalites had been arrested, and 84 had surrendered across Chhattisgarh, Telangana, and Maharashtra. Shah further affirmed the Modi government’s resolve to eliminate Naxalism by March 2026.

The operation, which had been ongoing for 72 hours, was part of a larger push by security forces to take down key Maoist leaders in the region. State Home Minister Vijay Sharma confirmed that more than 26 Maoists had been killed in the encounter.

Basavaraju, 71, had been the general secretary of the banned CPI (Maoist) since 2018. A veteran of the Maoist movement since the 1970s, he had been one of the most elusive figures in India’s insurgency, with a reward of ₹1.5 crore placed on his head. Basavaraju had disappeared from public view over the years, despite being a BTech graduate, using multiple aliases and evading capture by law enforcement. He had no known property in his hometown of Jiyannapeta, Andhra Pradesh, and had been operating primarily in Chhattisgarh, Telangana, and parts of Maharashtra.

Basavaraju played a key role in the formation of the Communist Party of India Marxist-Leninist People’s War (CPIMLPW) in 1980. His expertise in ambush tactics and explosives was sharpened in the 1980s with training from former Tamil rebels in the forests of Abujhmad, Bastar. Basavaraju played a key role in the 2004 merger of CPIMLPW and the Maoist Communist Centre of India (MCCI), which eventually formed CPI (Maoist).

He had been hiding out in the forests of Abujhmad before his death, for at least the past eight years. His death marks a significant blow to the Maoist leadership in India and is being hailed as a major victory in the fight against the Naxal insurgency.