A senior woman Naxalite, Gummadiveli Renuka, who carried a collective reward of ₹45 lakh in Chhattisgarh and Telangana, was killed in an encounter with security forces in Chhattisgarh’s Bastar region on Monday.
Renuka, a law graduate, had been an active member of the outlawed Communist Party of India (Maoist) since 1996 and was considered a key figure in the insurgent group. She carried a reward of ₹25 lakh in Chhattisgarh and ₹20 lakh in Telangana.
The gunfight erupted around 9 AM in a dense forest along the border of Dantewada and Bijapur districts when a team of District Reserve Guard (DRG) personnel launched an anti-Naxal operation.
Acting on intelligence inputs regarding the presence of Naxalites in the forested hills of Nelgoda, Ikeli, and Belnar villages along the Geedam (Dantewada) and Bhairamgarh (Bijapur) border, security forces engaged in a fierce encounter that lasted for nearly two hours.
Following the exchange of fire, the body of Renuka was recovered. She was also known by several aliases, including Bhanu, Chaite, Saraswati, and Damyanti. A resident of Kadvaendi village in Warangal, Telangana, she had been a highly influential figure within the Maoist hierarchy.
Security personnel recovered an INSAS rifle, explosives, a laptop, and Maoist literature from the encounter site. Renuka was a member of the Dandakaranya Special Zonal Committee, considered the strongest Maoist formation.
She was also in charge of the press team of the Central Regional Bureau (CRB) of the banned outfit. Bastar Range Inspector General of Police Sundarraj P stated that Renuka had risen through the Maoist ranks over the years.
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She was promoted to the rank of Divisional Committee Member (DVCM) in 2003 and worked closely with senior Maoist leaders, including Krishna Anna, a Special Zonal Committee (SZC) member in Andhra Pradesh, central committee member Dula Dada, and SZC member Ramanna.
Following the death of Ramanna due to COVID-19 in 2020, Renuka was elevated to an SZC member and took charge of the press team in CRB.
She played a crucial role in disseminating Maoist propaganda by issuing press releases and overseeing the publication of various Maoist magazines, including Prabhat, Mahila Margam, Awami Jung, People's March, Jhankar, Sangharshtar Mahila, Pituri, Midangur, and Bhumkal Sandesh.
Her brother, GV Prasad, alias Gudsa Usendi, who was also an SZC member, had surrendered in Telangana in 2014.
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Renuka married Shankamuri Apparao, alias Ravi, a central committee member of the CPI (Maoist), in 2005. However, Apparao was killed in an encounter with security forces in Andhra Pradesh in 2010.
Her death marks a major setback for the Naxalite movement in the region, as she was one of its key propagandists and strategists.
So far this year, security forces have gunned down 135 Naxalites in separate encounters across Chhattisgarh. Of these, 119 were eliminated in the Bastar division, which comprises seven districts, including Dantewada and Bijapur.
The Union government has intensified its crackdown on Maoist activities, with Union Home Minister Amit Shah reiterating that under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership, the government is committed to eradicating Naxalism before March 31, 2026.
The latest action comes just days after security forces eliminated 18 Naxalites, including 11 women, in twin encounters in Sukma and Bijapur districts on Saturday.
Earlier this month, 30 insurgents were killed in two separate operations in Bijapur and Kanker districts. With a sustained offensive by security forces, the Maoist movement in Chhattisgarh continues to face mounting pressure.
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