Top Maoist leaders among those killed in Malkangiri encounter?

Going by the weapons found at the place where the encounter between CPI (Maoist) and a joint force of AP and Odisha police near Rampur village under Jantri police station area in the cutoff area in Malkangiri district in the early hours of Monday, in which 21 Maoists were reportedly killed, some of the top leaders of the Maoist party were present and were among those killed. The Maoist party was reportedly participating in a plenary session of the party.

Though the police is yet to confirm the news, top leaders like Chalapathi, his wife Aruna, Ganesh, Gajarla Ravi alias Uday, Daya, Pandanna alias Jagan, and Sudheer were among those killed. Top leader of the party RK (Akkiraju Haragopal) has reportedly escaped while his son Munna was among those killed. Two policemen were injured. Four AK 47s, four SLRs, one Insar riffle, about a dozen .303 riffles, some landmines, a laptop, some important documents, were found at the place where the encounter had taken place.

RK was said to be in the second party of the group of Maoists and has retreated deeper into the jungle after first party was attacked.

Twenty one Maoists were reportedly killed. While Superintendent of Police Rahul Dev Sharma has confirmed the death of 18 Maoists in the morning with their identity to be established, bodies of three persons were found in the Balimela reservoir and they were believed to be Maoists who have tried to escape in a boat after receiving injuries. The AP Greyhounds have reportedly received information about the meeting the Maoists have planned and attacked the same along with their Odisha counterparts.

The two police personnel injured are likely to be shifted by helicopter to Visakhapatnam for better treatment. Director General of Police N. Sambasiva Rao and other senior officers are expected to visit the city. He told in Hyderabad that if any Maoist was found injured in the incident, he too would he provided medical aid.

Meanwhile Virasam leader Varavara Rao and AP Civil Liberties Committee district president T. Sreerama Murthy demanded the government to get the post-mortem on the bodies performed at Visakhapatnam. A judicial inquiry by a sitting judge must be conducted into the reported encounter, he said.

This is the second major encounter and the biggest in Malkangiri district of Odisha and one of the major incidents in the Andhra-Odisha border area. Thirteen Maoists were killed in an encounter with the police in September 2013 in Podia block in Malkangiri district.