Hardcore Naxal with Rs 6 lakh bounty arrested in Gadchiroli in Joint operation by police and CRPF

Gadchiroli (Maharashtra) [India] June 28 (ANI): In a major breakthrough in the ongoing anti-Naxal operations, Gadchiroli Police, in collaboration with the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), arrested a most-wanted Maoist commander during a joint operation on 27 June 2025, said an official statement.
The arrested individual, Ankal alias Mannu Sulge Pallo, was carrying a bounty of Rs 6 lakh announced by the Maharashtra government.
According to officials, the arrest was made during a routine anti-Maoist patrol in the dense forests of Kawande under the Bhamragad Sub-division. Two teams from the Special Operations Squad, personnel from the newly established Kawande Police Post, and a team from C-Company, 37th Battalion CRPF, were conducting the patrol when they spotted a suspicious individual. The suspect was swiftly apprehended and taken to the Gadchiroli Police Headquarters for detailed interrogation.
He was later identified as Ankal alias Mannu Sulge Pallo (28), Deputy Commander of the Korchi Dalam and a resident of Kawande village in Bhamragad taluka. Investigations revealed that he was scouting the area to conduct reconnaissance for a possible sabotage mission.
Further interrogation confirmed his involvement in several high-profile Naxal attacks, most notably the deadly IED blast on 1 May 2019 in the Jambulkheda forest area under Kurkheda Subdivision, which claimed the lives of 15 police personnel. He also took part in a gunfight with security forces in the Khobrameda forest area on 29 March 2021.
Following his identification, a case was registered at the Purada Police Station. He was produced before the Judicial Magistrate First Class in Kurkheda, who remanded him to seven days of police custody.
Ankal's Naxal career spans over a decade. He joined the NIB Company in Chhattisgarh in 2012 and served until 2017. He then moved to the Bhamragad Dalam and later became Deputy Commander of the Korchi Dalam, a post he held from 2017 to 2020.
Since 2020, he had been operating covertly in the forests along the Maharashtra-Chhattisgarh border, actively gathering intelligence on police movements and planning ambushes.
As of now, five serious criminal cases, including three encounters and two murders, are registered against him.
With this arrest, the total number of Maoists apprehended by Gadchiroli Police since January 2022 has risen to 104, highlighting the effectiveness of continued anti-Naxal operations in the region. (ANI)