Journalist's death adds twist to Azad killing case

Hyderabad: The alleged encounter killing of the top Maoist leader ce and spokesman of CPI Maoist, Cherukuri Rajkumar alias Azad, took an entirely new twist Saturday as the other person who died with him has turned out to be a freelance journalist from Delhi.

He was identified as 32-year-old Hemchandar Pandey, a resident of Dewaltal village in Pithorgarh in Uttarkhand who was working as a freelance journalist in Delhi.

Revolutionary poet and Maoist sympathiser Vara Vara Rao said that Pandey was on a tour to cover the atrocities on the tribal population in the name of Operation Green Hunt against Maoists.

Police had said that Azad and another unidentified Maoist were killed in an encounter in Jogapur forest area of Adilabad district. Police said that the incident occurred near Sarkepally village and exchange of fire continued for more than four hours. But people in nearby hamlets said that they did not hear any sound of firing at night and there wasn't any indication of such a massive encounter. Adilabad district superintendent of police Pramod Kumar said that 20 to 25 Maoists participated in the encounter.

A CPI Maoist spokesman Gudsa Usenid and Vara Vara Rao separately claimed that Azad was picked up by Andhra Pradesh police from Nagpur and was killed in a fake encounter.

The identification of the other victim as a journalist has only added to the confusion and has raised several uncomfortable questions for the police.