From Koraput armoury raid to courtroom killing: Maoist commander Chelluri Narayana Rao's life maps 40 years of bloodshed in Andhra-Odisha border area

VISAKHAPATNAM: With the surrender of senior Maoist leader Chelluri Narayana Rao alias Suresh, security agencies claim to have effectively dismantled the top leadership of the Andhra–Odisha Border (AOB) Special Zonal Committee of the CPI (Maoist). Suresh, considered a key military strategist within the Maoist ranks, was allegedly involved in several major incidents, including the Koraput armoury raid and attacks in Udayagiri, Nayagarh and R. Udayagiri areas. Police said he also led a five-member action team responsible for the killing of Circle Inspector Gandhi and his gunman Chiranjeevi inside a court premises in Salur town of Vizianagaram district in 2021, an incident that drew nationwide attention. According to officials, the attack was allegedly carried out in retaliation for a 1998 police encounter at a tribal hamlet under Komarada police station limits on the Andhra–Odisha border, in which 13 Maoists, including senior leader Ganti Ramesh alias Rajanna, were killed. A native of Bathupuram village in Srikakulam district, Narayana Rao is believed to have joined the Maoist movement in the mid-1980s, reportedly influenced by leaders of the then People’s War Group.

He studied up to intermediate level before going underground. Over the decades, he operated in multiple Maoist units, including Kondabaridi, Chandanagiri and Uddanam dalams, eventually rising to the district committee, state committee and AOB Special Zonal Committee levels. During his time in Srikakulam, he was allegedly involved in attacks on police establishments, including a strike on a police picket in the Palasa area.

Officials also link him to the killing of an intelligence officer in the region. Police sources said Suresh spent nearly four decades operating in forest areas along the Andhra–Odisha border and was associated with several attacks targeting security forces. Despite personal setbacks, including the deaths of his spouses—both reportedly Maoist cadres killed in separate encounters—he is said to have remained committed to the Maoist ideology. Officials described his surrender as a significant development in ongoing efforts to curb Maoist activity in the AOB region.