BHOPAL: The surrender of two wanted female naxal cadres in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh within five days earlier this month may prove crucial to the ongoing operations aimed at eliminating left-wing extremism (LWE) from Madhya Pradesh by March 2026.
On 1 November, a 22-year-old naxal cadre identified as Sunita, who carried a bounty of Rs 14 lakh on her head and was armed with an INSAS rifle, surrendered before the police in Balaghat district of MP.
Five days later, on 6 November, another wanted female naxal, identified as Kamla Sodi alias Taruna, who carried a bounty of Rs 17 lakh on her head, surrendered before the police in Chhattisgarh’s Khairagarh-Chhuikhadan-Gandai district.
Both women, who hail from Chhattisgarh, had been active in the dense forests of Madhya Pradesh, particularly in the tri-junction of Balaghat (MP), Gondia (Maharashtra) and Rajnandgaon (Chhattisgarh), which forms the core of the CPI (Maoist) Maharashtra-MP-Chhattisgarh (MMC) zone.
According to sources, the two surrendered cadres possess vital information about 40-50 armed naxals, around half of them women, currently operating across three to four dalams (armed groups) of the CPI (Maoist) in MP’s Balaghat and Mandla districts.
Credible sources connected to MP Police’s anti-naxal operations said information given by Sunita has “put a stamp of approval” on intelligence regarding the presence of a highly dangerous group of 11-12 armed cadres led by central committee member (CCM) Ramder in MP and neighbouring jungles since early 2015.
“Aged around 58 years, Ramder was actually assigned the responsibility of heading the MMC zone by 2024-end and has been active since early 2025 in the region. It has now been revealed that the same group had killed the 25-year-old youth Devendra Yadav, on the suspicion of being a police informer in Balaghat district in September,” sources claimed.
Following Sunita’s surrender, the group headed by Ramder had at least four female cadres left. Sunita was one of the two bodyguards of the group’s head. “A few months back, we had got evidence about the presence of Ramder in the jungles of Balaghat, but it has been fully confirmed after Sunita’s surrender.”
Her questioning has revealed that the group led by Ramder—whose other bodyguard has been identified as Sagar, is equipped with INSAS and AK-47 assault rifles, besides an Under Barrel Grenade Launcher (UBGL).
The Madhya Pradesh Police are now preparing to question the other surrendered cadre, Taruna, in Chhattisgarh.
Sources in the police forces of both states said they are in constant touch with each other regarding Taruna’s questioning in connection with the three to four armed naxal groups active in the jungles of Balaghat and Mandla.
“Taruna was part of that group which had lost three female cadres and one male cadre in the gun-battle with police in June this year in the Pachama Dadar forests of Balaghat district. All those four naxals carried bounties of Rs 14 lakh each. Taruna had managed to escape from that gun-battle and her questioning will be crucial for gathering credible and latest inputs about the movement of the outlaws forming part of Darrekhasa Area Committee, Malajkhand Area Committee and Tanda Area Committee, which have long been active in Balaghat and Mandla districts,” sources claimed.
Importantly, the June 2025 encounter not only resulted in the elimination of the four wanted cadres but also led to the recovery of a truck full of arms and ammunition. It further helped MP’s anti-naxal security apparatus penetrate the group’s stronghold in Pachama Dadar, considered unbreachable for nearly three-and-a-half decades.
Sunita’s questioning has also brought to light possible unrest among women cadres within the three to four dalams operating in the region, stemming from growing sexual exploitation by senior members.
“They are being forced to work as coolies and cooks and very often subjected to sexual exploitation. Earlier, they had no option but to remain in the group, as they feared being killed by the group in case of breaking away. But the series of encounters of big naxal commanders in Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and MP, are believed to have encouraged them to surrender and join the mainstream. Even Sunita, whose naxal cadre father made her join the outlaws in Chhattisgarh in 2022, has been subjected to sexual exploitation and also insulted by group leader Ramder, while alleging her of being in sexual relationship with a fellow male cadre,” sources said.