Maharashtra police confirm death of top Maoist leader Milind Teltumbde among 26 rebels in Gadchiroli encounter

Two divisional committee members (DVCMs) amongst 16 slain rebels identified so far.

@the_news_21

Pune: In a major setback to Maoist insurgents, Maharashtra police authorities on Sunday confirmed that top fugitive Maoist Milind Baburao Teltumbde was indeed among the 26 members of the banned Communist Party of India (Maoist) who were killed in the November 13 encounter in Gadchiroli district of the state. 

Teltumbde was known by his aliases ‘Jeeva’ and ‘Deepak’, was the central committee member of the CPI (Maoist) and in-charge of the newly formed Maharashtra-Madhya Pradesh-Chhattisgarh confluence (MMC) zone of the outlaws. He hailed from Rajur village in Yavatmal district’s Wani tehsil and carried a bounty of Rs. 50 lakhs on his head. It is said that he was instrumental in the growth of the outlawed movement in Gadchiroli, Gondia and Rajnandgaon districts in Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh. 

Six among the slain outlaws were women, who were killed along with other senior members of the CPI (Maoist) in the gun-battle between teams of C-60 commandos and the outlaws that began early on Saturday morning in the Mardintola forest area of eastern Maharashtra (near the Chhattisgarh border) and lasted for several hours into Sunday, today. 

“As per the primary identification, Teltumbde was one of the 26 Maoists killed in the encounter on Saturday. Three security personnel have also been injured in the cross-firing. They have been airlifted by helicopter to Nagpur and admitted for treatment at a local hospital,” said Gadchiroli Superintendent of Police Ankit Goyal. 

The identity of ten of the slain rebels has yet to be ascertained, the 16 who have been identified include Lokesh alias Mangu Podiyam (also known as Mangu Madkam) and Mahesh alias Shivaji Gota – both Divisional Committee Members (DVCMs). 

Mahesh Gota, who carried a bounty of Rs. 16 lakhs on his head, was the commander of the Kasansur dalam (squad) while Lokesh who was the commander of Company 4 and carried a bounty of Rs. 20 lakhs on his head. 

Those killed in the encounter with the Maharashtra police also included Teltumbde’s bodyguards, identified as Tilak Jade – an area committee member (ACM) also known by his aliases ‘Bhagatshingh’ and ‘Pradeep’ – and Manso Boga (known by her alias ‘Vimla’) who were said to be Teltumbde’s bodyguards. 

Police officials also said they had recovered a number of weapons including five AK-47s, one AK with UBGL or under barrel grenade launcher, nine SLRs (self-loading rifles), one INSAS (Indian Small Arms System) rifle, three .303 rifles among other small arms. 

Teltumbde had also been named as an accused in the 2018 Elgaar Parishad-Bhima Koregaon case, in which his elder brother Anand Teltumbde, a noted academic and writer is currently lodged in Mumbai’s Taloja jail and is awaiting trial. 

The National Investigation Agency (NIAs) charge sheet in the Elgaar Parishad that was filed last year in October, alleged that Milind Teltumbde had been apparently inspired by his elder brother to join the banned Maoist outfit.  

The NIA charge sheet had stated that Milind Teltumbde had been tasked with expanding the banned Maoist movement in urban areas with the help of his elder brother Anand Teltumbde on the international level and had allegedly taken guidance from him.