Gadchiroli (Maharashtra), Feb 26 : The Maharashtra Police have arrested a woman Maoist leader carrying a reward of Rs 6 lakh on her head from the terror-hit Gadchiroli district, officials said here on Monday.

The arrested person has been identified as Kamla Padaga Gota, alias Rajeshwari, who became an outlaw in 2006 when she was barely 13 years old, said Gadchiroli Superintendent of Police, Neelotpal.

The arrest came in the midst of CPI-Maoist's four-month long 'tactical counter offensive campaign' (February-May) when they take up various subversive activities, arson, attacks on security forces, destruction of public properties and other violence.

Hailing from Bada-Kakler village at Bijapur in Chhattisgarh, Rajeshwari (30) had multiple cases against her for several serious offences her in different police stations in the district.

Taking the extremist route as a teenager, she was recruited through the Chetana Natya Manch and in five years, she took over as its Deputy Commander.

In 2016, Rajeshwari was transferred to the Farsegarh LOS where she worked till her arrest in a case pertaining to police firing in Bijapur in 2019.

After her release from jail in 2020, she resumed working as an area committee member of a special Maoist outfit till her re-arrest on February 25 by the Gadchiroli Police.

In 2016, Rajeshwari was involved in two encounters with the police in the Karamarka jungles of Farsegarh and in Manewada forests of Bhopalpattanam, both in Chhattisgarh.

She was part of another team that indulged in police encounters in Kachalaram forests near Bijapur in 2018, and last year she was part of a gang that opened fire on Gadchiroli Police in Bhamragad jungles.

After the four encounters notched in her name, Maharashtra government announced Rs 6 lakh reward for her capture.

Stating that 73 hardcore Maoists have been arrested in the past 13 months, Neelotpal appealed to the extremists to shun violence and surrender before the security forces.

/IANS