ROURKELA: Amid the continuing crackdown on Left-Wing Extremism (LWE) in Odisha, a local guerrilla squad member (LGSM) of the outlawed CPI (Maoist) outfit surrendered before Rourkela police on Tuesday.
The surrendered Maoist is 18-year-old Umblen Honhaga alias Prabhu, a native of Halamuli village under Chhotanagra police limits in West Singhbhum district of adjacent Jharkhand. He was active in the Maoist-hub of Saranda forest.
Prabhu surrendered before DIG (Western Range) Brijesh Kumar Rai and Rourkela SP Nitesh Wadhwani at the district police office here.
Rai said Prabhu was associated with the South Chhotanagra division of the CPI (Maoist) outfit as an LGSM. He was increasingly frustrated with the Maoist ideology, torture by senior leaders and fear of life due to frequent combing operations by security forces. Influenced by the surrender policy of Odisha government, Prabhu quit the banned outfit and surrendered to join the mainstream of life, he added.
SP Wadhwani said Prabhu was working with the CPI (Maoist) organisation for the past two years. The Odisha government is laying stress on elimination of LWE due to which anti-Naxal operation has been intensified along the Odisha-Jharkhand border.
Incidentally, 15 Maoists were killed by security forces during a massive anti-Naxal operation under Chhotanagra police limits in Saranda a fortnight ago.