Top Maoist Commander Madvi Hidma Among Six Naxals Killed in Major Encounter on Andhra–Odisha Border

Visakhapatnam, Nov 2025 : Top Maoist leader and CPI (Maoist) Central Committee member Madvi Hidma is believed to be among the six Maoists killed in a fierce exchange of fire with security forces in Andhra Pradesh’s Alluri Sitharamaraju district, close to the Andhra–Odisha border, on Tuesday.

The gun battle erupted in the Maredumilli forest region during a massive joint combing operation involving police teams from Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh and Odisha, along with central paramilitary forces. The operation was launched after intelligence inputs indicated the presence of a large Maoist group in the area.

While an official confirmation is awaited, sources indicate that Hidma, one of India’s most wanted Maoist commanders, is among the dead. His presence at the encounter site is being verified. If confirmed, his killing would mark one of the most significant setbacks for the banned CPI (Maoist) in recent years.

According to police sources, the encounter began when the forces surrounded a Maoist camp and asked the rebels to surrender. Instead, the Maoists allegedly opened fire, prompting the security personnel to retaliate. A prolonged exchange of gunfire followed, resulting in the death of six Maoists.

Security forces continued search operations deep inside the forest as a few Maoists are suspected to have escaped the initial cordon.

The encounter site lies near the tri-junction of Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Chhattisgarh, an area notorious for being a strategic corridor for Maoist movements.

Hidma, 43, has long been regarded as the most feared and elusive Maoist commander in the country. As the chief of Battalion No. 1 of the People’s Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA)—the outfit’s most lethal strike unit—he carried a reward of ₹50 lakh on his head. He was also the only tribal from Chhattisgarh’s Bastar region to rise to the CPI (Maoist) Central Committee.

Hidma is believed to be the mastermind behind several of the deadliest Maoist attacks in India, including the 2010 Dantewada massacre, in which 76 CRPF personnel were killed. He was also suspected of orchestrating the 2013 Jhiram Ghati attack that claimed 27 lives, including those of top Congress leaders. In 2021, he was linked to the ambush in Sukma, Chhattisgarh, that killed 22 security personnel.

Tuesday’s operation comes amid a series of recent successes for security forces in Maoist-affected regions of Chhattisgarh. The elimination of Hidma, if officially confirmed, would be a major blow to Maoist attempts to regroup in the Andhra–Odisha border region, once considered a stronghold of left-wing extremism.

(The content of this article is sourced from a news agency and has not been edited by the Mavericknews30 team.)