Hyderabad, April 10 – As many as 42 members of the CPI (Maoist), including the commander of the People’s Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA) Battalion, Sodi Malla alias Keshal, surrendered to the Telangana Police on Friday, along with 36 firearms and 800 grams of gold.
The Maoists who surrendered to Director General of Police (DGP) B. Shivdhar Reddy include 21 members of the PLGA, 11 members of the Telangana State Committee (TSC), and 10 members of the Dandakaranya Special Zonal Committee (DKSZC).
Except for a member of the TSC Area Committee, all the Maoists were from Chhattisgarh.
Key members who surrendered include Sodi Malla alias Keshal alias Nikhil, who was in charge of the PLGA Battalion, Jayashankar, a member of the TSC, Chapa Narayana alias Gajendar alias Madhu, a member of the DKSZC, and Kadthi Sannu alias Manthu, a member of the JMMWP DVC.
The DGP stated that among the three “magical weapons” of the CPI (Maoist), the PLGA has completely neutralized the most crucial one through these surrenders.
“After the surrender of all the leaders of the TSC, the remaining TSC members have now been neutralized, and the Telangana State Committee of the CPI (Maoist) no longer exists,” the DGP said, declaring that Telangana is now completely free from the armed formations of the CPI (Maoist).
As part of the surrender process, the members handed over 36 firearms, 1,007 rounds of ammunition of various calibres, 2 country-made grenades, and eight gold biscuits, each weighing 100 grams.
The surrendered firearms include five AK-47 rifles, four SLR rifles, three INSAS rifles, six .303 rifles, one 9mm Sten gun, two 8mm rifles, 10 single-shot guns, one 9mm pistol, two revolvers, one BGL gun, and one Air gun.
According to the Telangana government’s rehabilitation policy, members of the TSC will receive Rs 20 lakh each, members of the DVCM/CyPCM will receive Rs 5 lakh each, members of the ACM/PPCM will receive Rs 4 lakh each, and Party Members (PM) will receive Rs 1 lakh each.
According to MHA guidelines, incentives are admissible for the surrender of arms. The total eligible reward amount of Rs 1.93 crore will be disbursed to the 42 underground CPI (Maoist) members who surrendered along with weapons on Friday.
The eligible reward amount of Rs 4 lakh for the Telangana native (Kunjam Idumal alias Mahendar, ACM) has been disbursed to him through Demand Draft/Cheque.
For the remaining 41 members, who are natives of Chhattisgarh, an interim relief of Rs 25,000 each has now been handed. The remaining amount will be disbursed after the completion of documentation and opening of bank accounts.
The DGP commended the dedicated and coordinated efforts of the Special Intelligence Branch. Their sustained and professional efforts have successfully led to the surrender of Maoist cadres.
The surrender of 761 cadres before the Telangana Police and the recovery of 302 firearms since 2024 underscore the steady decline and total collapse of the organisation, Shivdhar Reddy said.
According to him, only five active underground cadres from Telangana remain in various formations across the country outside Telangana. They are all operating in other States, including Chhattisgarh. Two among them are members of the Central Committee of the CPI (Maoist).
He said that, through nomination, Central Committee Member, Muppala Laxman Rao alias Ganapathi, has been away from active CPI (Maoist) activity since 2007. He is the only significant cadre left from Telangana.
The police chief appealed to all five cadres to lay down their armed struggle and join the mainstream, and also obtain the benefits of the Telangana government’s policy of surrender and rehabilitation.