In a major setback to the banned CPI(Maoist) organisation, 41 underground cadres, including six senior operatives of CyPCM/DVCM rank, surrendered before Telangana Director General of Police B. Shivadhar Reddy along with other seniors officers in Hyderabad on December 19, 2025. The cadres laid down 24 firearms— including one INSAS LMG, three AK-47 rifles, five SLRs, seven INSAS rifles, one BGL gun, four .303 rifles, one single-shot rifle, and two airguns — significantly weakening the outfit’s operational capability.
| Photo Credit: Nagara Gopal
“Forty-one underground cadres of the banned CPI Maoist organisation surrendered before the Telangana Police on December 19, along with 24 firearms, marking one of the largest such surrenders in the State this year,” police said.
The surrendered group included six senior functionaries holding Company Platoon Committee Member and Divisional Committee Member ranks.
37 Maoist cadres return to mainstream in Telangana
Among them were Madakam Manga, 28, alias Mangal, a PLGA battalion commander, Erragolla Ravi, 40, alias Santhosh, Prashanth, Praveen and Mahesh, secretary of the Komaram Bheem Asifabad Mancherial divisional committee, and Korsa Lachu, 34, alias Prashanth and Yogesh, commander of the second Central Regional Command company. The surrender took place in the presence of the Director General of Police, Telangana, Shivadhar Reddy.
The DGP said the cadres formally renounced violence and opted to rejoin mainstream society. The weapons handed over included an INSAS light machine gun, three AK-47 rifles, five SLRs, seven INSAS rifles, a BGL gun, four .303 rifles, a single shot rifle and two air guns, along with 733 live rounds of ammunition and eight BGL shells.
According to the officer, the surrendered cadres belonged to multiple formations, including the People’s Liberation Guerrilla Army battalion, the Telangana State Committee and the Dandakaranya Special Zonal Committee with its divisional and area committees.
The DGP described the surrender as a significant blow to the organisational strength and operational capability of the CPI Maoist in the region.
The officer added that the decision to surrender followed an appeal made by Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy on October 21, 2025 urging Maoist cadres to abandon violence and return to civilian life. The surrendered cadres cited sustained pressure from security forces, internal rifts, ideological disillusionment, harsh living conditions and prolonged separation from families as key reasons for their decision.
Under the State’s rehabilitation policy, surrendered cadres are eligible for financial assistance based on their rank. Police said the total eligible rehabilitation and surrender incentive amount for the group works out to ₹1.46 crore. An interim relief of ₹25,000 each has already been handed over, with the remaining benefits to be disbursed after completion of documentation and opening of bank accounts.
In 2025 alone, a total of 509 underground CPI Maoist cadres have surrendered before the Telangana Police, reflecting what officials termed a steady decline in the organisation. The Director General of Police reiterated an appeal to remaining underground cadres to surrender their weapons and avail themselves of the State’s rehabilitation and reintegration programme, assuring full support and protection.
Published – December 19, 2025 04:11 pm IST
