Top Maoist leader gunned down in Andhra Pradesh

Mangalore Today News Network

Hyderabad, July 2: In a major blow to the Maoists, their top leader and spokesperson Cherukuri Rajkumar alias Azad was killed in a gunfight with police in Andhra Pradesh Friday, police claimed.

The shootout took place near Jogapur in Adilabad district, about 300 km from here.

Another Maoist guerrilla, who is yet to be identified, was also killed. Police also recovered an AK-47, a 9mm pistol and two kit bags from the scene of the gunfight.

Azad, who carried a reward of Rs.12 lakh on his head, was a member of the central committee of the outlawed Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist). Hailing from Krishna district, he was associated with the Maoist movement for four decades.

Following the killing of Azad, security agencies have sounded a high alert in Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Chhatttisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand and West Bengal.

Azad was gunned down by police two days after Maoists killed 27 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel in Chhattisgarh.

Fake encounter?

Meanwhile, CPI-Maoist spokesman Gudsa Usendi has alleged that Azad was killed in a fake encounter.

He told that "Azad was to meet a courier, Sahdev at 11 am on Thursday and accompany him to Dandakaranya region to participate in some programmes."

Usendi alleged that the Special Investigations Bureau of Andhra Pradesh Police picked up the duo on the way and after subjecting them to torture throughout the night killed them in a fake encounter.

Meanwhile Revolutionary Writers Association Head Vara Vara Rao has also condemned the incident. Terming it as a fake encounter, Rao said that he along with Azad’s family members will move a petition in the state high court demanding that a case of murder be booked against the policemen involved in the incident.

IANS