Bhubaneswar/Hyderabad: Five Maoists were killed in an encounter with security forces in the Gumma forest area of Kandhamal district in Odisha, police said on Thursday. Among those killed was senior Maoist leader and Central Committee member Paka Hanumanthu alias Ganesh Uike, who was carrying a reward of ₹1.10 crore.
Police identified Hanumanthu as a native of Pullem village in Chandur mandal of Nalgonda district, Telangana. He had been associated with the Maoist movement for nearly four decades and was considered a key strategist within the organisation, having held several important positions over the years.
Born in 1961, Hanumanthu was the eldest of six children of Paka Chandrayya and Papamma. He completed his schooling in Chandur and pursued intermediate and degree studies in Nalgonda, during which he was reportedly active in radical student and labour unions. Police sources allege that he played a key role in the killing of an ABVP leader about 45 years ago, after which he went underground and joined the Naxalite movement.
After going underground, Hanumanthu did not return to his native place, even during the deaths of his parents. He rose through the ranks from mandal committee member to district- and state-level leader and later became a Central Committee member, overseeing Maoist activities across three states. Police said he had been suffering from health issues in recent years.
Officials also recalled that Chhattisgarh police had earlier announced Hanumanthu’s death in a major encounter in Gariaband district. However, the Maoist leadership and his family later clarified that he was not among those killed at the time. Police have now confirmed his death in the latest encounter in Odisha. Security forces have intensified combing operations in the region following the encounter, officials said.