Dantewada: 63 Naxals Lay Down Arms in 2nd Mass Surrender of Year
The surrender of the Naxals was the outcome of the Poona Morgham, a Gondi term meaning ‘social integration through rehabilitation’ initiative, Bastar range inspector general of police P Sunderraj said.
Raipur: As many as 63 Naxals, 36 of whom carried a cumulative bounty of Rs 1.19 crore, on Friday surrendered in Dantewada under south Bastar region of Chhattisgarh.
This was the second mass surrender of Naxals in Bastar in the current year so far.
A couple of days ago, 26 Naxals laid down arms to return to the mainstream of the society in Sukma in south Bastar region.
The Maoists who surrendered in Dantewada on Friday included 18 women cadres, police said.
“The surrendered Maoists were active in the Darbha Division, South Bastar Division, West Bastar Division, and Maad Division of Naxals”, Dantewada district superintendent of police Gaurav Ray said.
Of them, seven were in the rank of divisional committee (DVC) member carrying a bounty of Rs eight lakh each, and seven others were in the rank of area committee members carrying a reward of Rs five lakh each.
Twenty-two others carried bounties ranging from Rs two lakh to Rs 50,000.
The surrender of the Naxals was the outcome of the Poona Morgham, a Gondi term meaning ‘social integration through rehabilitation’ initiative, Bastar range inspector general of police P Sunderraj said.
With this, as many as 89 hardcore Maoists active in south Bastar region have surrendered in the current year so far.
Last year, 1,524 Naxals had surrendered.
The two mass surrenders of Naxals in south Bastar, happened in a gap of two days, are viewed in the security circles with significance ahead of the deadline of March end set by Union home minister Amit Shah to root out Leftwing extremism in the country.
Chhattisgarh chief minister Vishnu Deo Sai hailed the mass surrender of Naxals, saying that the Maoists have laid down arms by reposing their faith in the rehabilitation policy of his government.
