DRG jawans dance in rain after gunning down top Maoist leader in Chhattisgarh

Transcript

00:00That's how the District Reserve Guard DRG Jawan celebrated their return after one of the biggest

00:07anti-Naxal operations in recent years. On 21st May 2025, in Chhattisgarh's Abujmar forests,

00:15DRG and other forces gunned down 27 Naxals in a major joint operation. The slain leaders carried

00:22a combined bounty of Rs 3.5 crore. Among them was Basavaraju, CPI Mao's General Secretary and

00:28key planner of deadly attacks on Indian forces. When the DRG Jawans returned on 22nd May 2025,

00:34they were welcomed with Tilaks, Aarti and chants of Bharat Mata ki Jai. Despite heavy rain,

00:40they danced late into the night, celebrating not just a victory but the elimination of a

00:45man who had led the Maoist insurgency for decades. They swayed to traditional Bastarya music,

00:50smeared each other with colours and cheered for what officials called a historic achievement.

00:54Weapons recovered from the encounter site included AK-47s, SLR and SAS carbines and a large stock of

01:01ammunition. But the success came at a cost. One DRG Jawan was martyred and several others were

01:07injured in the fierce exchange. IG Buster, P Sundaraj, called Basavaraju's killing a turning point in the

01:13anti-Naxal fight, citing his role in planning attacks on Indian forces. PM Modi hailed the May 21st

01:19operation as a remarkable success and reaffirmed the government's resolve to end Maoism. Home

01:24Minister Amit Shah said it was the first time in 30 years a Maoist General Secretary was eliminated,

01:28adding 54 arrests and 84 surrenders following Operation Black Forest. FYI, Operation Black Forest

01:35began in late April 2025 and involved several phases, including multiple encounters and the

01:41destruction of Naxal hideouts.