Who was Madvi Hidma, the dreaded Maoist commander behind major attacks in last 2 decades?

In a major boost to the country’s fight against Naxalism, security forces on Tuesday acheived a significant breakthrough as they neutralised one of the most dreaded Moaist commanders, Madvi Hidma, also known as Hidmalu and Santosh.

Hidma was killed along with five other associates in a joint operation near the Chhattisgarh–Andhra Pradesh border.

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Andhra Pradesh Police chief Harish Kumar Gupta said they believe Hidma was among the six Maoists killed after an hour-long exchange of fire.

Who was Madvi Hidma and the attacks he orchestrated on security forces?

Hidma was a native of Chhattisgarh’s Sukma district. He was born in Purvati village in 1981.

He was accused of planning and executing more than 20 attacks on security forces over the last two decades.

In fact, his name appeared in almost all the major Maoist attacks on security forces and civilians in Chhattisgarh since 2010.

According to reports, Hidma played a key role in the 2010 Dantewada massacre in which 76 CRPF perssonel were killed.

His name also appeared in the 2013 Darbha Valley attack in which Maoists killed 27 people, including former Chhattisgarh minister Mahendra Karma, Chhattisgarh Congress chief Nand Kumar Patel, and senior Congress leader Vidya Charan Shukla.

Later in April 2017, hundreds of Maoists ambushed a 99-member troop of CRPF, killing 25 personnel. Hidma was also reportedly involved in the attack.

Hidma was also believed to have orchestrated the 2021 Sukma-Bijapur Maoist ambush in which 22 security personnel were killed.

In 2025, he narrowly escaped an encounter in Karregutta hills where security forces neutralised 31 Maoists.

Hidma was also in the National Investigation Agency’s most-wanted list and had a cumulative rewards of over Rs 1 crore on his head.