Top Maoist commander Ganesh Uike, carrying Rs 1.1 crore bounty, killed in Odisha
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Top Maoist commander Ganesh Uike, carrying Rs 1.1 crore bounty, killed in Odisha")
Ganesh Uike, carrying a reward of Rs 1.1 crore, was killed in an encounter in Odisha. Photograph: (PTI)
Ganesh Uike, known by various aliases, like Pakka Hanumantu, Rajesh Tiwari, and Rupa, was a veteran insurgent originally from Nalgonda, Telangana. He was one of the few remaining members of the Maoist Central Committee, the insurgent group’s apex decision-making body.
Security forces delivered a body blow to the Maoists and killed a top Telugu Maoist commander in Odisha on Thursday. Ganesh Uike, 69, a high-ranking central committee member of the CPI (Maoist) was carrying Rs 1.1 crore bounty and was the head of Odisha operations. Uike was killed by teams of the Border Security Force (BSF) and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in the Rampa forest area bordering Kandhamal and Ganjam districts. Three other Maoists, including two women cadres, were also killed in the encounter. The operation has delivered a significant blow to the Maoist insurgency by eliminating its leadership in the state.
The security forces encountered an armed Maoist squad in the Rambha forest range at around 9 am on Thursday. The encounter began after a small mobile team of the Odisha Police’s Special Operations Group (SOG) launched a combing operation in the forest following a tip-off about Maoist movement.
The insurgents opened fire, leading to a heavy exchange of bullets. By noon, security forces recovered the bodies of four Maoists from the site, including that of Ganesh Uike.
Security personnel also recovered high-calibre weaponry from the site, including two INSAS rifles and a .303 rifle. Uike, known by various aliases, like Pakka Hanumantu, Rajesh Tiwari, and Rupa, was a veteran insurgent originally from Nalgonda, Telangana.
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Uike carried Rs 1.1 crore bounty on his head
Ganesh Uike was one of the few remaining members of the Maoist Central Committee, the insurgent group’s apex decision-making body, and the government had announced a staggering bounty of Rs 1.1 crore on him.
He played a pivotal role in the Dandakaranya Special Zonal Committee (DKSZC) for more than 40 years and was the primary link between the central leadership and local units across what has been called the Red Corridor.
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Uike was one of only three central committee members left
Uike was also one of the only three central committee members left, along with Mallaraji Reddy, alias Sangram, in Chhattisgarh and Analda, alias Toofan, in Jharkhand. The identities of three other Maoists killed on Thursday are being verified.
This encounter brings the government closer to its stated goal of making the country Maoist-free by March 2026.
Earlier this year, the Maoist Central Committee’s General Secretary Basavaraj was killed in May and Commander Madvi Hidma in November.
“This is a historic success for our forces. The elimination of an Rs 1.1 crore bounty leader breaks the backbone of the Maoist organisational structure in the region,” said a senior official monitoring the operation.
