CPI(Maoist) losing cadre, base in T'gana, AP

The outlawed Communist Party of India (Maoist), which has lost several top Maoist leaders and cadre in large numbers in the exchange of fire with the security forces in the dense forests of Chhattisgarh and its borders of Telangana, Odisha and Maharashtra in the last one year, is also fast losing its intellectual base and ideological strength, people familiar with the matter said.

- Srinivasa Rao Apparasu

HYDERABAD: The outlawed Communist Party of India (Maoist), which has lost several top Maoist leaders and cadre in large numbers in the exchange of fire with the security forces in the dense forests of Chhattisgarh and its borders of Telangana, Odisha and Maharashtra in the last one year, is also fast losing its intellectual base and ideological strength, people familiar with the matter said.

One of the main reasons is the fast dwindling of intellectual leadership from the Telugu states at the top level, which had dominated the Maoist outfit in the last two decades. Many of the top leaders from Telangana and Andhra Pradesh who were at the helm in the outfit have either been killed in encounters or died of age-related issues or various ailments. And those who are still holding top positions are ageing and have lost the ability to lead the movement, let alone spreading the Maoist ideology across the country.

"At present, the Maoist outfit is fighting a battle for survival and the top leaders are more focused on shifting to safer zones in the wake of intense war with the security forces in the dense forests of Chhattisgarh. There are no indications of the top leaders conducting political classes for the cadre on the Maoist philosophy now," a senior intelligence official of the Telangana police said on condition of anonymity.