KOZHIKODE: Lijesh alias Ramu alias Raman, deputy commander of Kabani Dalam of the CPI (Maoist), who has been working in the People’s Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA) for the past seven years, has surrendered before the police.
Born at Amarakkuni in Wayanad, Lijesh had shifted to Virajpetta in the past few years. Addressing a press conference at the District Police Office in Wayanad, Lijesh said he decided to surrender after he realised the futility of the Maoist movement.
“I have been operating in the Wayanad area along with my cadres for the past seven years. There is nothing we could gain. I appeal to others members also to surrender,” Lijesh said. The surrender is a big achievement for the Kerala police as it is for the first time a Maoist cadre is responding to the surrender and rehabilitation policy announced by the government in 2018.
Lijesh surrendered before the Wayanad district police chief Aravind Sukumar on Monday night. Inspector General of Police (North Zone) Ashok Yadav, who was also present while Lijesh addressed the press conference, said that the surrender is an important milestone in the counter-Maoist strategy of the Kerala police. The objective of the surrender package was to bring back the youth who were misled by the Maoists.
“Kerala police have been consistently using their channels to motivate the youths to surrender their arms and leave this group which is involved in violent acts,” the IG said. According to the government’s surrender plan, a panel will study the case of each surrender and act accordingly. Separate provisions have been earmarked for the surrendered Maoist cadres according to their rank in the organisation.