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Who is IPS Sumathi? A saree-clad officer behind historic Maoist surrender in Telangana
IPS Sumathi ensured that the Special Intelligence Branch's strategy worked, even convincing Devuji, who had no plans to leave the Maoist path, to surrender.
A top Maoist commander Thippiri Tirupati alias Devuji and several senior cadres laid down their arms on Tuesday in Telangana. At the centre of this historic surrender was IPS B Sumathi, a saree-clad officer whose strategic vision and patient negotiations helped bring some of the most hardened Maoist leaders back into the mainstream.
As the head of the Special Intelligence Branch (SIB) of Telangana Police, Sumathi reportedly supervised the long-drawn talks that persuaded Devuji, a key Central Committee member of the proscribed Maoist party, along with Malla Raji Reddy and two other senior cadres, to lay down their arms.
“They have surrendered because of the excellent efforts of Special Intelligence Branch IG Sumathi and the SIB team. They played a crucial role in helping them understand the prevailing circumstances and to join the mainstream,” Reddy told mediapersons, as reported by news agency PTI.
Who is IPS officer B Sumathi
Sumathi, a 2001-batch IPS officer, has been a seasoned intelligence official for over two decades.
She has overseen the surrender of 591 Maoist leaders and cadres over the past two years, quietly steering delicate negotiations and operations that brought high-ranking ultras back into the mainstream, reported PTI.
Sources say she played a key role in undercover operations during her earlier tenure in the counter-intelligence cell. She was first posted in Warangal (then part of undivided Andhra Pradesh) and became an IPS officer in 2006.
Over her career, she has also served as DIG of the CID Women Protection Cell.
Police sources explained that the SIB team’s approach was carefully calibrated: the leaders “would become martyrs if they lost their lives in encounters and heroes if arrested, whereas they would become zeroes if they surrendered.”
Sumathi ensured that this strategy worked, even convincing Devuji, who had no plans to leave the Maoist path, to surrender.
Unlike other Maoist leaders such as Mallojula Venugopal Rao alias Sonu, who surrendered before Maharashtra last October, Devuji’s surrender required meticulous negotiation. Sumathi’s leadership in intelligence and negotiation made the difference, according to police officials.
(With PTI inputs)
