Two High-Ranking Women Maoists Surrender: A Turning Point in India's Anti-Maoist Campaign

Both Sunita and Taruna originated from Maoist strongholds in Chhattisgarh.

Bhopal:

In a significant development in India's counter-Maoism efforts, two highly sought-after women Maoists, each with substantial bounties and valuable intelligence, surrendered in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh within a five-day span. According to police, their confessions could provide the most significant breakthrough in years as both states intensify efforts to eliminate the Red Corridor presence from Madhya Pradesh by March.

On November 1, Balaghat district in Madhya Pradesh witnessed an unusual event when Sunita, a 22-year-old Maoist guerrilla carrying an INSAS rifle, emerged from the forest to surrender. She had a bounty of Rs 14 lakh on her head.

Five days later in the neighboring Khairagarh-Chhuikhadan-Gandai district of Chhattisgarh, another high-profile Maoist, Kamla Sodi, also known as Taruna, with a Rs 17 lakh bounty, also surrendered to authorities.

Both Sunita and Taruna came from Maoist-dominated regions in Chhattisgarh.

They operated within the dense forests of the tri-junction area connecting Balaghat (MP), Gondia (Maharashtra), and Rajnandgaon (Chhattisgarh), the strategic center of the notorious MMC (Maharashtra-MP-Chhattisgarh) zone of the CPI (Maoist). Both women now possess crucial information about 40-50 armed cadres, with nearly half being women, who continue to operate in MP's Balaghat-Mandla region.

For security agencies, these surrenders represent an invaluable intelligence opportunity.

Top sources in Madhya Pradesh's anti-Maoist operations informed NDTV that Sunita's interrogation confirmed the existence of a clandestine group of 11-12 heavily armed Maoists led by a central committee member named Ramder, who has been operating in the forests of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Maharashtra since 2015.

"Approximately 58 years old, Ramder was expected to assume complete control of the MMC zone by late 2024. Sunita confirmed this information. She served as one of his two personal bodyguards," sources revealed.

The same group, according to Sunita's confession, was responsible for the brutal murder of 25-year-old Devendra Yadav in Balaghat this September, after accusing him of being a police informant.

With Sunita's departure, Ramder reportedly has four female cadres remaining in his group, all armed and trained in jungle warfare. The group possesses INSAS rifles, AK-47s, and Under Barrel Grenade Launchers (UBGLs), posing a serious threat to security forces navigating the challenging terrain.

Perhaps the most disturbing revelations came from Sunita's detailed disclosures. Behind the Maoist rhetoric of gender equality lies a harsh reality: women cadres are being treated as laborers, cooks, and sexual objects.

"They are repeatedly exploited by senior Maoist leaders," a senior officer stated. "Previously, escape was impossible because they feared being hunted down and executed. However, the recent elimination of major Maoist commanders across Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, and MP has encouraged many to surrender," the officer added.

Sunita herself was coerced into joining the movement by her Maoist cadre father in 2022. She endured repeated sexual abuse and was even humiliated by Ramder, who accused her of having a relationship with another male cadre.

This profound dissatisfaction among women cadres, police believe, could prompt more high-value surrenders, potentially accelerating the collapse of the MMC zone structure.

The Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh Police are now working together to interrogate Taruna, whose history is connected to one of this year's most decisive encounters.

Taruna was part of the Maoist unit that lost three women and one man during a fierce gunfight in Balaghat's Pachama Dadar forests in June. Each of the deceased Maoists carried bounties of Rs 14 lakh.

That encounter not only eliminated a significant portion of the Maoist fighting unit but also resulted in the seizure of an entire truck loaded with weapons and ammunition. For the first time in nearly 35 years, security forces penetrated the Maoist safehouse network in the notoriously impenetrable Pachama Dadar region.

Taruna escaped that encounter, and her testimony could now reveal the movement patterns of the Darrekhasa, Malajkhand, and Tanda Area Committees, which form the backbone of Maoist presence in Balaghat-Mandla.

The surrenders of Sunita and Taruna have energized the security establishment. With Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh now jointly debriefing the two women, agencies are optimistic that the March deadline set by Madhya Pradesh to become Naxal-free may be achievable.