India

Maoists kill another BJP worker in Bijapur district

December 11, 2024

New Delhi: In their fifth targeted incident, Maoists on Tuesday killed a 35-year-old BJP worker in Chhattisgarh‘s Bijapur district who they claimed was disguised as a police informer, officials said. The victim, identified as Kudiam Mado, was reportedly targeted on suspicion of being a police informer and was allegedly involved in the recent crackdown on Maoists in Chhattisgarh.

The incident took place at Somanpalli village under Farsegarh police station limits, where a group of Maoists stormed Mado’s house, dragged him outside and strangled him to death. A pamphlet left at the crime scene by the Maoists’ committee claimed responsibility for the killing, reiterating accusations of Mado acting as a police informer.

This marks the fifth civilian killing by Maoists in Bijapur in the last seven days. On December 4, two former sarpanchs, including a BJP worker, were murdered in separate attacks. Two more women were killed in separate incidents on December 6 and December 7.

Police teams have launched a search operation to track the assailants. Officials have intensified operations in the area to curb the growing threat posed by Maoist groups. Nearly 300 Maoists, including women cadres, have been killed in police action this year, with Union home minister Amit Shah setting a deadline of March 2026 to end the Red menace.

On Wednesday, the Shah-headed ministry informed the Rajya Sabha that there has been a progressive decline in the number of districts affected by LWE. “In view of the consistently improving situation, three reviews of LWE-affected districts have been undertaken in the last six years with reduction from 126 to 90 districts in April 2018, further to 70 in July 2021 and then to 38 in April 2024,” MoS (Home) Nityanand Rai said in a written reply.