IN the naxal encounter that took place in the dense forests along the Dantewada-Bijapur border security forces got a big success with the elimination of a senior Maoist leader and press in-charge of the banned CPI (Maoist) organisation on whose head the government has announced a reward of Rs 45 lakh. According to officials, the deceased has been identified as Gummadiveli Renuka, also known by the names Bhanu, Chaite, Saraswati, Damyanti, who served as the Central Regional Bureau (CRB) Press Team Incharge and editor of the Maoist publication Prabhat Patrika. She was carrying a total reward of Rs 45 lakh, with Rs 25 lakh announced by the Chhattisgarh Government and Rs 20 lakh by the Telangana Government.

 

The joint team of Dantewada District Reserve Guard (DRG) and Bastar Fighters launched an anti-Maoist operation based on intelligence inputs about the presence of Naxal cadres in the Nelgoda-Ikeli-Belnar forested region under Geedam police station limits. According to Dantewada Superintendent of Police, Gaurav Rai, the operation started on March 30, and an exchange of fire broke out at around 9:00 AM on March 31. The gunfight lasted for approximately two hours, following which the security forces recovered the body of a female Maoist, along with an INSAS rifle, ammunition, explosive material, a laptop, Naxal literature, and other essential supplies. Inspector General of Police, Bastar Range Sundarraj P informed that the slain Maoist leader Renuka is originally from Kadavendi village, Warangal district, Telangana and held an LLB degree before joining the Maoist movement in 1996.

 

Over the years, she worked closely with top Maoist leaders, including SZCM Krishna Anna in Andhra Pradesh and CCM Dula Dada alias Anand in South Bastar. In 2013, she shifted to the Maad region, working alongside SZCM Ramanna. Following his death due to COVID-19 in 2020, she was appointed the Press Team Incharge of the Central Regional Bureau (CRB) of the Dandakaranya Special Zonal Committee (DKSZCM). Renuka played a crucial role in issuing Maoist press releases and publishing various underground magazines such as Prabhat, Mahila Margam, Awami Jung, People’s March, Podiyaro Pollo, Jhankar, Sangharshmarti Mahila, Pituri, Midangur, and Bhumkal Sandesh. Her brother, SZCM GVK Prasad alias Sukhdev alias Gudsa Usendi, surrendered to Telangana police in 2014.

 

She was married to Central Committee Member (CCM) Shankamuri Apparao alias Ravi, who was killed in an encounter in Nallamala, Andhra Pradesh in 2010. As Security forces have intensified operations against Maoist insurgents in Bastar, IG Sundarraj P said that 119 hardcore Maoists have been killed in encounters across the Bastar Range in the last 92 days. “The government and security forces are working relentlessly to ensure peace, security, and development in the Bastar region. The banned CPI (Maoist) organisation has no option but to surrender. Those who continue violence will face severe consequences and urged the Maoist cadres to abandon violence and join the mainstream,” stated the IG. The operation involved personnel from DRG, STF, Bastar Fighters, CoBRA, CRPF, BSF, ITBP, CAF, and other security forces deployed in Bastar.