Raipur: Top Naxalite commander Madvi Hidma, who masterminded several attacks over the last two decades, was killed in an encounter in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh on Tuesday, a breakthrough the Chhattisgarh Police described as the “last nail in the coffin” of insurgency.

Security forces gunned down Hidma (51), his wife Madkam Raje, and four other Maoists in the Maredumilli forest in Alluri Sitaramaraju district of the neighbouring state this morning, a senior police officer in Bastar confirmed.

Hidma’s death a historic day in anti-Naxal operations

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai said the killing of Hidma, along with five other Maoists, in a joint operation by security forces along the Chhattisgarh-Andhra Pradesh border marks a “decisive achievement” in the fight against L

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