Bhubaneswar: Altogether 15 hardcore Maoists, including top Maoist couple Niranjan Rout alias Nikhil and his wife Rashmita Lenka alias Indu, surrendered before the Odisha Police today.

The Maoists voluntarily laid down their arms and handed over their weapons to Additional Director General (ADG) of Police (Anti-Naxal Operations) Sanjeeb Panda at a special function at Rayagada.

According to police, Nikhil and Indu were the State Committee Members of the banned Maoist organisation and they were carrying rewards of Rs 55 lakh each.  

14 weapons, including AK 47, surrendered

“The 15-member Maoists have two State Committee Members, one Divisional Committee Member, five Area Committee Members and eight party members. Together they were carrying reward of Rs 1.98 crore,” said the Odisha Police.

They surrendered 14 weapons including two AK 47 rifles, five SLRs, one INSAS, one sten gun, one .303, four single shots and huge quantity of ammunition. The reward against the arms is about Rs 16 lakh, it added.

guns

The 15-member group was from BGN division (Banshadhara, Ghuman, Nagabali) and it was operating in Rayagada, Kandhamal, Gajapati and Kalahandi districts of Odisha, revealed the police.

Nikhil had joined Maoists organisation in 2004 and he was active in BGN since 2008. After killing of Central Committee Member Ganesh Uike in Kandhamal in December last year, Nikhil was the next highest-ranking Maoist in Odisha, they added.

Koraput and 4 other districts declared Naxal-free

“The surrender of 15 Maoists reflects the steadily weakening influence of left-wing extremist ideology in the region and the growing trust of misguided youth in the government’s development-oriented and people-centric approach. The sustained operation by SOG, DVF, CRPF, BSF has eroded the base of Maoists,” stated the ADG.

According to the ADG, the surrendered Maoists would be extended the benefits under the state government’s Surrender and Rehabilitation Policy, including financial assistance, vocational training, skill development, to help them reintegrate into society with dignity.

So far, Nuapada, Nabarangpur, Malkangiri, Koraput and Boud district have become completely Naxal-free, said the Odisha Police.