Top Maoist leader Koteswar Rao allegedly killed in W. Bengal forest gun battle

Kolkata, Nov. 24 (ANI): Top Maoist leader Koteswar Rao alias Kishenji has reportedly been killed in a gun battle in the Burishol Forests of West Bengal's Purulia District.

Unconfirmed reports further said that apart from Kishenji, four other ultras were also been killed in the gun battle that lasted for around 30 minutes.

Home Ministry is yet to confirm Kishenji's killing.

According to reports, a search is also on for another Maoist leader Suchitra Mahato.

Despite strong measures initiated by the central government to crush the ultras, the Maoist insurgency has gripped nearly a third of the country, spreading into the interiors of 20 of India's 28 states.

The guerrilla war, waged mostly from the forests of central and eastern India by ultras of the banned outfit, Communist Party of India-Maoist, is seen as the country's biggest internal security threat, say analysts.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had earlier asked the specially appointed panel of interlocutors to continue their mediation with the Maoists ultras in the state, in a bid to resolve a long-standing issue that has turned into a political potboiler.

A recent crackdown on rebel-dominated areas had raised hopes that the government was winning the battle against the Maoists whom Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has described as India's biggest internal security threat.

However, the latest string of attacks by Maoist ultras, including repeated strikes and ambushes targeting security personnel deployed in insurgency-affected areas, has led to fears that security forces are ill prepared to deal with the threat.

For the past few years, the rebels have stepped up their attacks against the government, targeting and damaging democratic and civil institutions of the nation, such as schools, medical centres and government property.

Maoists have also significantly increased their presence in tribal and rural regions in affected states like Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Bihar, West Bengal and Orissa. (ANI)