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Top Maoist leader Devji surrenders in Telangana
An official announcement will be made in a day or two only after the formalisation of the surrender process, police said
In what can be considered the last nail in the coffin of the outlawed Communist Party of India (Maoist), two of its top leaders, including party general secretary Thippiri Tirupati alias Devji, 60, and central committee-cum-politburo member Malla Raji Reddy alias Sangram, 76, surrendered to the Telangana police, officials familiar with the development said on Sunday.
A senior official of the Telangana police confirmed that the two leaders, along with 16 other members of the party including a few high-profile leaders, surrendered to the special intelligence bureau (SIB) of the Telangana police in Komaram-Bheem Asifabad district in the early hours of Sunday.
“An official announcement will be made in a day or two only after the formalisation of the surrender process and the Maoist leaders are likely to be produced before the media in the presence of director general of police B Shivadhar Reddy or even chief minister A Revanth Reddy,” the official said.
There have been reports of Devji, Raji Reddy and others sending feelers to the Telangana police for the last two days, after the security forces launched a massive operation in Karreguttalu Hills bordering Telangana-Chhattisgarh.
“The SIB police have been mounting pressure on the Maoist party leaders through their families, friends and acquaintances to either surrender or get killed in the encounter. Last week, the Telangana DGP made an open appeal to the leaders to surrender and join the mainstream, so that they can lead a respectable life in the society,” the official said.
