Amit Shah Vows Swift Elimination of Naxals, Cites Recent Successes

New Delhi/Ahmedabad: Union home minister Amit Shah on Wednesday asserted that the Narendra Modi government will eliminate Naxals from the country in a short period of time. The Central government has been conducting incessant operations against terrorism and Naxals, he said in a statement, a day after security forces gunned down 29 Maoists in Chhattisgarh.

"I can say with conviction that operations against Naxals will continue in the times to come. Under the leadership of the Prime Minister, we will uproot Naxalism from our nation in a short period of time," Mr Shah said.

The Union home minister said since the formation of the BJP government in Chhattisgarh three months ago, more than 80 Naxals have been eliminated, more than 125 arrested and more than 150 have surrendered.

Mr Shah said a large number of camps of security forces have been set up in Maoist-affected areas since 2014. Since 2019, as many as 250 such camps have been set up, ending the security vacuum.

In the biggest ever encounter in Chhattisgarh, security personnel on Tuesday gunned down 29 Naxalites, including some top commanders, in Kanker district.

This was the highest number of fatalities suffered by Maoists in a single encounter in the history of the state's fight against Left-wing extremism.

Since the start of 2024, as many as 79 Naxalites have been killed in separate gunbattles with security forces in the Bastar region, a Maoist stronghold.

Three security personnel also suffered injuries in the fierce gunbattle and a large quantity of weapons was seized from Tuesday's encounter spot in Kanker district, officials said.