CNN
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Indian police have killed 31 Maoist rebels in what is called the “largest operation ever” against a long-term rebellion.
Security forces spent 21 days trying to capture rebels along the borders of central India’s Chhattisgarh and Telangana, Home Minister Amit Shah said on Wednesday.
Describing the operation as a “historic breakthrough,” Shah said security forces had “the biggest operation ever” against rebels, killing 31 people on Kalleguttal Hill, which is considered a Maoist hub.
Since 1967, Indian authorities have fought against Maoist rebel groups also known as Naxals in several central and northern states. Inspired by Chinese revolutionary leader Mar Zedon, the rebels launched attacks on government forces for decades to overthrow the state.
“Our security forces completed this biggest anti-Naxal operation in just 21 days. We are extremely pleased that there was no single casualty in the security forces in this operation,” Shah congratulated X with “courage and courage.”
“So far, the operation has destroyed a total of 214 Naxal hideouts and bunkers,” a statement from the Interior Ministry added that hundreds of explosives had been recovered during the search.
The rebels are known as Indian Naxalites after Naxalbari, a village in West Bengal that was born in the late 1960s.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed Operations for X posts.
“This success of security forces shows that our campaign to eradicate Naxalism is moving in the right direction. We are fully committed to establishing peace in areas affected by Naxal and linking them to the mainstream of development,” Modi said.
The Indian government cracked down on areas where Maoist groups are operating. This is an approach that appears to be lowering the threat level, but has been criticized by some observers for being more likely to be forced and abused.
According to Ministry of Interior data, cases of violence by rebel groups have decreased from 1,936 in 2010 to 374 in 2024. The total number of civilian and security force deaths has also fallen by 85% during this period, data shows.
However, villagers living in Maoist territory are largely cut off from the country’s rapidly growing economy, with many terrorizing, both taking children as recruits and violent government raids. Some Chhattisgarh villagers previously told CNN that they had been forced to pay taxes to Maoists and to face abuse and torture. But if they paid, they risked being labelled as Maoist sympathizers by government forces.
At least 31 Maoist rebels and two police officers were killed in February. This was explained by police as the most deadly battle ever this year.
In 2021, 22 Indian security force members were killed and injured in a four-hour shootout with the rebels in 2021, officials said.
