Opinion Killing of top Maoist leader in Chhattisgarh: A turning point

Since it assumed office in December 2023, Chhattisgarh’s Vishnu Deo Sai government has mounted a concerted offensive against Maoist militants. Last year, 219 left-wing extremists (LWE) were killed, the highest in a year since the formation of the state. The operations intensified this year. On Wednesday, in perhaps the most significant anti-Maoist offensive in recent years, CPI (Maoist) general secretary Nambala Keshava Rao, alias Basavaraju, along with 26 other Maoist cadres, was killed. Basavaraju played a key role in some of the most brutal Maoist operations in the past 15 years, including the 2010 massacre that claimed the lives of 76 CRPF jawans and the 2013 Jhiram Ghati attack, which wiped out almost the entire Congress leadership in the state. In the past year-and-a-half, however, the extremists suffered a string of reverses in operations spearheaded by Basavaraju. Now, the CPI (Maoist) general secretary’s death could mark a turning point. Chhattisgarh may be on track to meeting Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s target of eliminating Maoism by March next year.

Chhattisgarh, especially its Bastar, Narayanpur, Dantewada and Bijapur districts, is among the few remaining Maoist bastions in the country. The movement has lost steam in its erstwhile strongholds in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. This has led to several top leaders shifting base. Basavaraju, born in Srikakulam, Andhra Pradesh and a graduate of the Regional Engineering College, Warangal, was amongst them. Chhattisgarh’s geography — a forested area bordering Maharashtra, Odisha and Telangana, with poor transport and communication facilities — and the economic deprivation of a large section of the state’s people, allowed insurgents to gain a foothold. The state government’s complacency in the early years of this century also aided the spread of left-wing extremism. Instead of strengthening the security forces and initiating welfare measures, precious time was wasted on strategies such as arming civilian militias — the Salwa Judum, for instance. However, like in other parts of the country, their recourse to violence and failure to recognise the resilience of democratic institutions worked against LWEs. The political will to counter the insurgents has firmed up — increasing inroads made by the security forces owe to greater coordination between the security forces of the Centre and the state. A network of base camps has ended the security vacuum in the forested areas, and at the same time, roads and mobile towers have put large parts of Maoist-affected areas on the developmental map. The state government has also started a policy of rehabilitating Maoists who surrender — they are provided houses under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, skill development programmes have special provisions for them, and companies are given incentives to hire former LWEs. Last year, more than 800 Maoists gave up arms in Chhattisgarh.

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With Basavaraju’s death, the Maoists may be headless, but the Centre and the state government cannot afford to let their guard down. They must keep up the security measures, while sharpening the strongest weapon against extremism — development.