BY :
Suranjan Mishra
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Representational photo of Maoists in Odisha
A Congress party leader was murdered allegedly by a group of Maoists in the border area between Chhattisgarh and Odisha, late Sunday night. The incident occurred in Lingapur village under Usur police limits in Bijapur district of Chhattisgarh.
Armed Maoists targeted Naga Bhandari, a local who was present at a community gathering. He was forcibly picked up from there and taken to a nearby forest where he was brutally killed. This act of violence is especially somber considering the murder of Naga’s brother, Tirupati Bhandari, by Maoists in October last year.
On being informed, Usur police reached the spot and launched an investigation. The officers are gathering evidence and questioning locals for further information.
On January 27, 2025, Maoists killed villager Hidma Sodhi in Bijapur district's Kesamundi village near Odisha's Malkangiri border. The assailants used sharp weapons and left posters warning against collaborating with security forces. This occurred during heightened Maoist retaliation after police encounters.
Maoists employed summary trials to justify killings, as seen in Sodhi's case where they accused him of police collaboration. Similar extrajudicial methods were documented in 2013 when rebels abducted and executed a village leader.
Persistent violence continues despite security gains, with May 2025 encounters reported in Narayanpur-Bijapur (7 Maoists killed) and Jharkhand's Saranda forest. Cross-border coordination remains critical in Odisha-Chhattisgarh-Jharkhand tri-junction.
The killing followed multiple security operations, including a May 8, 2025 encounter in Andhra Pradesh where two senior Maoists were eliminated. Security forces recovered AK-47 rifles and intensified combing operations.
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