Dreaded Naxal Hidma was killed 12 days before HM's deadline

Madavi Hidma, the dreaded Maoists commander, was killed by security forces 12 days before the November 30 deadline set by Union Home Minister Amit Shah to eliminate the most wanted Naxalite, sources said on Tuesday. Security forces killed the 44-year-old Naxal leader in the dense Pullagandi forests located at the tri-junction of Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Telangana. The Union home minister had set a deadline of March 31, 2026, for the eradication of the Maoist problem from the country. At a security review meeting, Shah also told the top security officials engaged in anti-Naxal operations to eliminate Hidma before November 30, and he was killed 12 days before this deadline, a source privy to the home ministers diktat. Sources also said that the way the operations against the Naxals are underway, the Left-wing extremism is likely to be over ahead of the home ministers March deadline. Born in Sukma in 1981, Hidma was the commander of a battalion of the Peoples Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA) and a member of the Maoist Central Committee. He was believed to be the only tribal member from Bastar to be part of this top leadership group. His direct involvement was found in more than 26 major Naxal attacks, making him one of Indias most feared insurgent leaders. PTI