Paka Hanumanthu killed in forest encounter, Maoist sources dispute official account

By Harsh Thakor* 

Paka Hanumanthu, also known by the names Ganesh and later Roopa, was killed in an encounter on 25 December 2025 in the Gumma forest area of Ni Kandhamal district. According to information released by Maoist sources, the incident occurred around noon. Security agencies have described the incident as an encounter, while Maoist groups have alleged that it was staged. Hanumanthu was 67 years old. He was a native of Pullemla village in Chandur mandal of Nalgonda district, Telangana.

Hanumanthu was associated with the Maoist movement for nearly four decades, beginning from his student years. Born and raised in Nalgonda, a region historically linked to the Telangana armed struggle, he became active in radical student politics while pursuing intermediate education. He later joined the movement as a full-time cadre and was initially assigned to urban organisational work. As part of this role, he was sent to Jagdalpur, where he worked on building local networks and learned Hindi to facilitate communication.

During his time in Jagdalpur, Hanumanthu was involved in organisational activities connected to unity discussions between the Maoist Communist Centre (MCC) and the People’s War Group, which culminated in their merger in 2004. He participated as a delegate in the Unity Congress held in 2007. In 2017, he was inducted into the Central Committee of the CPI (Maoist) and continued as a Central Committee member until his death.

Hanumanthu became involved in the Bastar region in 1990 and worked in the Dandakaranya area in various capacities until 2018, and subsequently in an advisory role until mid-2023. In 2019, he was appointed to the Southern Regional Bureau, which covers parts of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Kerala, but organisational constraints reportedly prevented him from reaching the region. In 2023, the Central Committee reassigned him to Odisha, where he joined the Maoist leadership structure in July that year.

Much of Hanumanthu’s work was concentrated in West Bastar, particularly in the Gangaloor region. He was involved in political mobilisation among Adivasi communities and played a role in organising protests and resistance campaigns during periods of intensified counter-insurgency operations, including Jan Jagaran Abhiyan in the 1990s and Salwa Judum from 2005 onwards. Maoist accounts credit him with organisational responsibilities during these phases, including efforts to expand the functioning of Janatana Sarkars from village-level units to divisional structures during Operation Green Hunt after 2009.

Hanumanthu was also associated with armed activities attributed to the Maoist movement. In 2006, he was involved in the formation of unified commands aimed at resisting Salwa Judum and is reported by Maoist sources to have played a role in an operation in which explosives were seized from the National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC). He also worked closely with youth cadres in Bastar and maintained records of individuals associated with the movement.

Between 2018 and 2023, when organisational limitations restricted his movement, Hanumanthu focused on internal study and writing. Using the pen name Ganesh Lahar and later Roopa, he documented Maoist accounts of the movement’s activities and wrote on social and political issues from the party’s perspective. His writings were compiled and circulated internally and among sympathisers in 2023.

Despite health issues, including high blood pressure and mobility-related ailments, Hanumanthu relocated to Odisha in mid-2023. Drawing on earlier experience in the Malkangiri region during the early 1990s and his knowledge of Odia and Bengali, he continued organisational work under difficult conditions, including limited medical access and heightened surveillance. In December 2024, he was shifted from the Western to the Eastern sub-zone of Odisha as part of internal restructuring.

A funeral was held on 28 December 2025 in his native village of Pullemla, Nalgonda district, according to Maoist sources.

---

*Freelance journalist