Three top Maoist leaders were killed today in an encounter between security personnel and armed Maoists in the Kondamodalu forest area of Alluri Sitarama Raju district in Andhra Pradesh.
Those killed have been identified as Aruna, a Special Zonal Maoist Committee member and wife of deceased Maoist leader Chalapathi Rao, Gajarla Ravi alias Uday, a Central Maoist Committee member and Anju, an ACM from the AOB Special Zonal Maoist Committee. Security personnel have recovered three AK-47 rifles from the site.
The encounter took place near Kintukuru village, between Maredumilli and Rampachodavaram in Alluri Sitarama Raju (ASR) district. According to police sources, the exchange of fire lasted for about 25 minutes after a group of 16 Maoists was spotted in the area. Security forces recovered three bodies from the site, and combing operations are currently underway as the remaining Maoists reportedly fled.
Simultaneously, a parallel encounter was reported near the Chhattisgarh border in Sukma district, where two more Maoists were killed and two AK-47 rifles were recovered. Operations in that region are also ongoing.
Gajarla Ravi, also known by aliases Uday, Ganesh, and Birusu, hailed from Velishala village in Bhupalapally district of Telangana. He was one of the highest-ranking Maoist leaders in the region and carried a reward of Rs 25 lakh. His involvement with the movement spanned nearly four decades. He had earlier participated in the 2004–05 peace talks with the then Andhra Pradesh government under Chief Minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy, as part of the People’s War Group.