A senior woman Naxalite carrying a reward of ₹14 lakh on her head has surrendered before police in Balaghat, Madhya Pradesh, officials said on Sunday.
The Naxalite, identified as Sunita, laid down her arms on November 1 before Rupendra Dhurve, Assistant Commander of the Hawk Force — a specialised anti-Naxal unit of the Madhya Pradesh Police.
According to police, Sunita served as an armed guard for Ramder, a Central Committee member of the banned Communist Party of India (Maoist) and in-charge of its NMC Zone. Her bounty was jointly announced by the Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, and Madhya Pradesh Police. A native of Gomveta village in Bhairamgarh area of Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district, she was armed with an INSAS rifle at the time of surrender.
Officials said Sunita had been active in Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra’s Gondia district, and Rajnandgaon in Chhattisgarh. She joined the Maoist movement in 2022 and received training in the Madh region of Chhattisgarh.
Chief Minister Mohan Yadav described her surrender as a direct outcome of Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s stern warning to Naxalites to either surrender or face decisive action.
“This marks the first surrender under the Madhya Pradesh Surrender, Rehabilitation and Relief Policy 2023 and the first time since 1992 that a Naxalite from another state has surrendered before the MP government,” Yadav said in a statement.
The Chief Minister also noted that Naxalites carrying a total bounty of ₹1.46 crore have been eliminated in Madhya Pradesh over the past ten months, highlighting the state’s intensified anti-Naxal operations.
