The wife of slain Naxal leader Chalapathi, who had a bounty of Rs 1 crore, was among three Naxalites gunned down on Wednesday in an encounter with security forces in Andhra Pradesh’s Alluri Sitarama Raju district.
The gunfight took place in the Rampachodavaram police station limits, where a joint team of security personnel launched a combing operation based on specific intelligence inputs.
According to officials, those killed have been identified as Chalapathi's wife, Ravi Chaitanya alias Aruna, a Special Zonal Committee Member (SZCM), Gajarala Ravi alias Uday, and Anju, an Area Committee Member (ACM).
All three were considered high-value targets within the Maoist hierarchy.
Arms recovered
During the operation, security forces recovered three AK-47 rifles from the scene, indicating the level of firepower the group was equipped with. The operation is part of ongoing efforts to curb insurgency and restore peace in Maoist-affected areas of Andhra Pradesh and surrounding states.
Further searches are underway in the surrounding forest areas to ensure no other militants are present.
Who was Chalapathi?
Chalapathi, also known as Appa Rao, was a seasoned Maoist leader in his 60s and was widely regarded as a master military strategist and carried a bounty of Rs 1 crore on his head. Known for crafting key assault strategies, he played a crucial role in shaping the ideological foundation of many young recruits within the Maoist ranks. He was killed along with 13 Naxalites in an encounter in Chhattisgarh earlier this year in January.
Born in Chittoor of Andhra Pradesh, Chalapathi joined the Maoist movement nearly 27 years ago. He once oversaw operations along the sensitive Andhra-Odisha Border (AOB) and last held a position in the Central Committee (CC) of the CPI (Maoist), the outfit's highest decision-making body.
His wife, Aruna, also joined the Naxal cadres and was an active member of the Maoist organisation.
Crackdown on Naxalism
The continuous anti-Naxal operations along the border areas of Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana come as part of Home Minister Amit Shah's vow to completely eradicate Left-wing extremism from India by March 2026. Security have been deployed for the past few months in the Karregutta Hills, a Naxal hotbed, hunting for Maoists who have chosen not to surrender.