Raipur: In a major success for security forces in Narayanpur district of Chhattisgarh, as many as four hardcore Maoist turned themselves before the police and surrender on Wednesday, January 15, said officials.
Those who laid down weapons on Wednesday were reported to be involved in over 40 cases of violence and were carrying a cumulative bounty of over 30 lakhs on their heads.
Two of the surrendered Maoists identified as Gandhi Tati alias Arab alias Kamlesh and Hemlal Korram alias mainu were holding the ranks of Divisional Committee Members with each carrying a reward of Rs 8 lakh, as announced by the state government.
Kamlesh, a resident of Bijapur district had donned many roles in the Maad division of the banned CPI (Maoist) and was reported to be involved in the Tadmetla massacre where 76 security personnel were martyred, said a senior official of the police.
Hemlal was active as secretary of the Aamdai Area Committee who was involved in a major Improvised Explosive Device (IED) attack carried out by the Maoists, resulting in martyrdom of 5 security personnel in the year 2021, he added.
The other two Maoist cadres were identified as Ranjit Lekami alias Arjun and his wife Kajal alias Kosi both carrying a reward of Rs 8 lakh each.
Those who have joined the mainstream by parting ways with the outlawed outfit were disappointed with the hollow ideology of the extremists and exploitation of local tribals. They were also inspired by the ‘Niya Nar Niya Police’ (Our village, our police) campaign, a flagship campaign started by the Narayanpur police.
Those surrendered have been provided with an immediate financial assistance of Rs25000 each. They will be rehabilitated as per the surrender cum rehabilitation policy of the state government. The development is expected to further damage the already weakening organizational strength of the Maoist outfit in Nelanar and Aamdai area.
Around 800 Maoist cadres have surrendered before the police in the violence-ridden Bastar division of the state marred by red terror in the last one year alone. This comes amidst amplified search operations leading to arrest of as many as 800 Maoists and neutralisation of over 200 in the contemporary period.
