New Delhi

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Monday carried out searches at more than 60 locations in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana in Left Wing Extremism (LWE) or Naxal case.

The raids are still underway at the premises and hideouts of suspects in both the states. Separate NIA teams started conducting raids in close coordination with state police forces since morning following inputs.

"A total of 60 locations in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana are being searched in Left Wing Extremism (LWE) or Naxal case," a top NIA source told ANI.

The raids are learnt to be conducted at Telangana's Hyderabad, and in Andhra Prdesh's Guntur, Nellore and Tirupati districts.

The places being searched are houses of several leaders of civil rights sympathizers who are suspected of having links with Naxal sympathizers.

On September 9, the NIA also conducted a series of raids and searches in Telangana and Chhattisgarh in connection with an August 2023 case involving the recovery of explosive materials, drones and a Lathe machine involving the banned Communist Party of India (Maoist) for use against security forces.

The NIA had registered the case against 12 accused after the explosive materials, drones and a Lathe machine were seized from three of them in the month of June in Cherla mandal of Kothagudem