Top Maoist commander and CPI (Maoist) Central Committee member Madvi Hidma was among six Maoists killed in an encounter with security forces in the Maredumilli forest area of Andhra Pradesh’s Alluri Sitharamaraju district on Tuesday, near the Andhra–Odisha–Chhattisgarh tri-junction.
The encounter occurred during a joint combing operation by police forces from Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Odisha, along with central paramilitary personnel, following intelligence inputs about Maoist presence in the region. The exchange of fire began after security forces surrounded the group and ordered them to surrender, IANS reported citing police sources. The Maoists allegedly opened fire, prompting retaliation.
Security personnel recovered the bodies of six Maoists, including Hidma, his wife Raje, and members identified as Chelluri Narayana and Tech Shankar. A large cache of weapons, including 47 AK-series rifles and ammunition, was seized from the site. Combing operations continued to locate Maoists suspected to have escaped deeper into the forest.
Hidma, 43, was considered one of India’s most wanted Maoist leaders. He headed the People’s Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA) Battalion No. 1, regarded as the Maoists’ most lethal strike unit, and was the youngest member of the CPI (Maoist) Central Committee as well as the only tribal representative from Chhattisgarh’s Bastar region. He carried a reward of ₹50 lakh.
Hidma was linked to at least 26 major attacks on police and paramilitary forces, including the 2010 Dantewada massacre in which 76 CRPF personnel were killed, the 2013 Jhiram Ghati attack on Congress leaders, and the 2021 Sukma ambush in which 22 personnel died.
Bastar IG P. Sundarraj described Hidma’s killing as a “decisive advantage” for security forces, noting that several high-ranking Maoist leaders had been eliminated in recent operations. He said the Maoist cadre was under increasing pressure and had fewer options to regroup. “Wherever they go, they have no choice left now but to surrender and join the mainstream,” he said.
The operation is seen as a major setback for the CPI (Maoist), which has been attempting to regain ground in the Andhra-Odisha border region, once a key Maoist stronghold.