Two Maoists killed in Sukma; anti-Maoist operations to continue through the monsoon season

According to the police, one INSAS rifle and one 12-bore rifle, along with other arms, ammunition, and explosive materials, were recovered from the site of the operation. File
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Two Maoists, including a Local Organisation Squad Commander carrying a reward of ₹5 lakh on his head, were killed by security forces during an operation in Chhattisgarh’s Sukma on Wednesday (June 11, 2025), the police said. Earlier, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai said that such anti-Maoist operations, which are usually dormant during the rainy season, would continue through the monsoon.

Sukma Superintendent of Police Kiran S. Chavan said that a joint team of Kukanar Police Station staff and Sukma District Reserve Guards had launched a search operation on Tuesday (June 10, 2025) afternoon, based on reliable intelligence inputs regarding the presence of cadres of the banned Communist Party of India (Maoist) in the region.

Maoist commander killed

During the search operation, which began around 2 p.m., there were multiple exchanges of fire between the security forces and the Maoists. “Following the exchange of fire, the dead bodies of two Maoists, including that of a woman cadre, have been recovered from the site,” Mr. Chavan. 

Preliminary identification efforts indicated that one of the deceased was Baman, the Local Organisation Squad Commander of Pedaras, who was carrying a reward of ₹5 lakh on his head, Mr. Chavan said. The identity of the female Maoist cadre recovered after the encounter is yet to be ascertained.

According to the police, one INSAS rifle and one 12-bore rifle, along with other arms, ammunition, and explosive materials, were recovered from the site of the operation.

Operation impact

Earlier in the day, the Chhattisgarh Chief Minister said that 425 Maoists had been killed in the State over the past one and a half years. Mr. Sai added that 1,388 Naxals had surrendered, and 1,443 had been arrested during the same period.

Addressing a press conference in Raipur to mark the completion of 11 years of the Narendra Modi-led government at the Centre, the Chief Minister credited the Prime Minister for the recent successes on the Maoist front, including the killings of top Maoist leaders Basavaraju and Sudhakar.

Asked about anti-Maoist operations during the monsoon months when they usually wane, Mr. Sai acknowledged that there are some difficulties during the rains, but insisted that the operations would continue.