At 7 am on Wednesday, India’s most wanted Maoist leader, Basavaraju, was killed in a fierce 30-minute gunfight deep in the forests of Abujhmad, Chhattisgarh. This comes after months of planning by the District Reserve Guard (DRG) and local police teams across Narayanpur, Bijapur, and Dantewada districts.
For everyday Indians, this isn’t just another encounter—it’s a big strike at the heart of a decades-long insurgency. For the security forces, it’s a hard-won breakthrough in territory long considered untouchable.
Once a “ghost general” of the CPI (Maoist), Basavaraju—officially Nambala Keshav Rao—was the top commander and brain behind major attacks. His stronghold was protected by Company No. 7 of the PLGA, the armed wing of the Maoists. And Abujhmad, with its steep cliffs and endless jungle, had shielded him for years.
But not forever.
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The Hunt Began With Whispers
Back in early 2024, the Narayanpur Police’s anti-Naxal wing began connecting dots—thanks to surrendered Maoists who once served under Basavaraju. Each confession added a new thread. Some lied. Others misled. But SP Prabhat Kumar’s team chased every clue.
Bit by bit, they shrunk the Maoists’ hiding space. The vast, untouched jungle started to feel a little smaller.
On Monday, acting on fresh intelligence, DRG units clashed with Maoists in four encounters across districts. Basavaraju slipped away.
Tuesday was quiet. Nothing moved.
But that night, DRG’s elite teams—Falcon, Eagle, Victor, Lima—camped just a kilometre from Basavaraju’s group of 25 armed cadres.
They didn’t know it. Neither did he.
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A Chance Encounter, A Historic Kill
At dawn, a Maoist sentry spotted a DRG jawan. A bayonet strike. A scuffle. A gunshot.
It blew the cover off both camps.
As bullets flew, Maoists tried to flee south. But DRG’s Lima team blocked them. They ran north—only to hit Eagle team.
Surrounded, they formed a tight circle around one man. He was older, protected fiercely. Suspicion turned to certainty.
After 30 minutes and over 300 rounds, the Maoists were overwhelmed. As the man fell, his comrades screamed, “Lal Salaam! PLGA Zindabad!”
But there was no escape. All were gunned down.
A DRG jawan, himself a former Maoist who surrendered in 2022, identified the body.
It was Basavaraju.
The fall of Basavaraju is not just tactical—it’s symbolic. The myth of the jungle as a Maoist fortress has cracked. Abujhmad is no longer impenetrable.
This win is also personal for the people of Bastar who have lived under the shadow of red terror for decades.
As one officer put it: “No one ever thought he’d be taken down like this.”
Turns out, it just needed a bayonet, a loyal jawan, and relentless resolve.
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