RAIPUR: A total of 12 cadres renounced the ideology of the CPI (Maoist) and surrendered with their weapons in Rajnandgaon district, around 100 km west of Raipur, in the early hours of Monday.
Among those who laid down arms was a senior Maoist leader of the Maharashtra–Madhya Pradesh–Chhattisgarh (MMC) zone and Central Committee member, Ramdher Majji, who carried a bounty of Rs 1 crore on his head. Four Divisional Committee members and several other cadres also surrendered.
The surrender of these senior figures, led by the Central Committee member, is being viewed as a major setback for the MMC unit of the banned CPI (Maoist).
Six of the 12 cadres are women, who, according to a police officer, were evidently encouraged by the state government’s lucrative surrender and rehabilitation policy.
The cadres handed over an AK-47 rifle, an INSAS assault rifle, a self-loading rifle (SLR), a .303 rifle, and other weapons.
Official legal procedures will now follow to ensure their rehabilitation and reintegration into society.
Since the BJP came to power in December 2023 in Chhattisgarh, approximately 2,300 Maoists have surrendered in the state.