HYDERABAD: Maoist party Central Committee leader Malla Raji Reddy alias Sangaram died due to illness in a forest area in Chhattisgarh. He was 70.
He hailed from Sastrulapalli village in Manthani Peddpalli district. He had diabetes and was unwell for some time, said his brother Bheem Reddy. Raji Reddy was carrying a reward of Rs 25 lakh on his head. The total reward on his head in different states amounts to Rs 1 crore.
Raji Reddy's brother did not have any information about the death of the top Maoist leader. However, a video of some Maoists crying over a body, believed to be Raji Reddy's, in a forest went viral on social media.
According to Bheem Reddy, Raji Reddy joined the Maoists in 1975. "Both of us got employment in Singareni Collieries Company Limited in 1975. I joined SCCL and my brother refused to join SCCL and joined Naxalites," Bheem Reddy told reporters in Mathani in Karimnagar.
A police case was registered against Raji Reddy in 1973 in a case relating to his village. When he was in Warangal jail, he met Kondapalli Seetharamaiah. Later, he joined the RSU and worked as Dal Commander of the party in Mathani and Mahadevpur areas.
He was arrested by Dharmapuri police in 1997. After he got bail, Raji Reddy went underground. He worked for the party in Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh and Odisha areas.
Raji Reddy was involved in several cases including attacking police in Kagaznagar in 1986 in which one SI and 12 other police personnel died. He was also involved in an attack on Karakugudem police station in Khammam district in which 16 police personnel were killed. Kerala police arrested him in 2007 and later the AP police brought him and presented before Jagtial court in 2007. After he was released from jail, he again went underground.
Raji Reddy is survived by one daughter. His relative Sarojana wanted the state government to confirm his death and hand over his body to family members.