Chhattisgarh

Selfie exposes Jai Ram’s relationship with younger Naxalite

Jagdalpur: Infamous Naxal Leader Ramchandra Reddy aka Chalapathi Taken Down After 30 Years of Violence Ramchandra Reddy, famously known as Chalapathi, a notorious Naxal leader who had been a symbol of violence across Andhra Pradesh and Odisha for 30 years, was finally neutralized. Interestingly, it was his romantic entanglement with a much younger cadre member, Aruna, that ultimately led to his downfall.

A Love Affair That Exposed Him

In 2014, Chalapathi, then a senior cadre in the Naxal organization, fell in love with 37-year-old Aruna, a junior cadre. Despite opposition from top Naxal leaders, he married her, which led to his demotion. However, his long-standing contributions to the organization earned him a reinstatement in the Central Committee in 2019. His undoing came in May 2016, during an encounter in Andhra Pradesh. Security forces recovered a smartphone containing a selfie of Chalapathi and Aruna. This rare personal lapse gave security forces a new lead on his identity.

A Marked Man After Aruna’s Death

Once his identity was confirmed, Chalapathi became a prime target for security forces. Three months after the selfie incident, Aruna was killed in a 2016 encounter in Odisha. Chalapathi himself was killed on February 19 in a fierce gunfight in the Kulharighat Reserve Forest, located in Chhattisgarh’s Gariyaband district.

Key Role in Naxal Coordination

With over four decades in the Naxal movement, Chalapathi was a member of the Andhra-Odisha Border Special Zonal Committee. As security forces intensified their crackdown, he played a critical role in coordinating operations across Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, and Jharkhand-Bihar. Initially, the responsibility for the Odisha State Committee was held by Akkiraju Gopal aka Ramakrishna. After Ramakrishna’s death from COVID-19 in 2019 in the Bastar forests, Chalapathi was elevated to the Central Committee and made the head of the Odisha State Committee.

Second High-Ranking Naxal Eliminated in an Encounter

Chalapathi is the second high-ranking Naxal leader to be killed in recent years. In 2021, Milind Teltumbde, another Central Committee member, was killed along with 26 Naxal cadres in an encounter in the Gyarapatti-Kodgul forests of Maharashtra’s Gadchiroli district. Reaching the top brass of Naxal leadership is extremely challenging, as they are typically protected by four layers of security and surrounded by 8-10 armed bodyguards equipped with advanced weaponry. Both encounters mark significant successes for security forces in dismantling the Naxal leadership.

Jeet

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