Chhattisgarh Naxal encounter: Who is Maoist Madvi Hidma?

Last weeks' brutal Naxal encounter in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur, in which at least 22 jawans were killed, has caused a dreaded name in the region to resurface: Madvi Hidma.

Hidma is known to be ruthless and a master of guerilla warfare, but who is he?

Madvi Hidma was born in Chhattisgarh's Sukma, and joined the Communist Party of India (Maoist) at the age of 10 and quickly rose up the party's ranks as a master strategist.

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He was arrested in 2016 along with six other Naxals, but not long after, was promoted to the CPI (Maoist)'s Central Committee, and then went on to lead the party's militia actions after the death of Ravula Srinivas aka Ramanna.

Hidma belongs to the Muriya tribal community of Bastar region and his village is still out of bounds for the police, according to a report by the Hindustan Times.

Hidma reportedly received guerilla warfare training in the Philippines and is also believed to have carried out several attacks in the last decade, the report said.

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He is also known to be a shadowy figure who avoids media glare, according to the report.

“Bastariya muriya tribals are aggressive and Hidma has established himself as a master strategist and successful operational commander,” a police officer told the publication.

Before last week's ambush, Hidma was widely believed to be the mastermind behind several attacks, including the 2017 Naxal attack in Sukma, in which over 20 CRPF jawans were killed.

Interestingly, the police do not have any photographs of Hidma, except an old black and white one—which is almost two decades old, according to a report by Firstpost. He carries a bounty of Rs 40 lakh on his head. The most common description of Hidma is that he carries an AK 47 and leads a strong group of about 250-300 Maoists.