A suspected terrorist has been reported killed in a shoot-out in Telangana's Shadnagar
A former Maoist and one of the most wanted gangsters across Telangana and Andhra Pradesh was shot dead on Monday in a town 60 km from Hyderabad.
Nayeem or Mohammed Nayeemuddin was an extortionist named in over 100 cases, the police say, including the murder of a senior police officer in 1993. He allegedly terrorized politicians, businessmen and realtors for years with his extortion demands.
He allegedly also gave information to the police on Sohrabuddin Sheikh, the petty thief whose encounter killing by the Gujarat police in 2005 became hugely controversial and led to a tangle of cases for everyone involved.
In recent days, there had been several complaints about threats and demands made by Nayeem. The calls were traced to a residential neighbourhood called Millennium Township in Shadnagar town.
Nayeem was allegedly hiding in a car. On spotting the police, the driver of his car opened fire. When the police fired back, Naeem was killed. Elite anti-Maoist Greyhound commandos were also involved in the operation.
In 2007, Nayeem allegedly tricked a police team and escaped after a court appearance saying he wanted to use the toilet.
It is suspected that Maoist outfits that go by the name "Nallamala Cobras and Kakatiya Cobras", which owned the killing of several civil rights activists in 2005, were operated either by Nayeem or his aides.
It is not yet clear why the police were chasing Nayeem at this time.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who visited Telangana for the first time yesterday, was briefed about the encounter in a meeting with Home Minister Rajnath Singh and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval this morning.