Chhattisgarh: Five Naxals surrender in Dantewada

Five Naxals, two of them allegedlyinvolved in multiple attacks on security forces and carryinghuge rewards on their heads, surrendered in Chhattisgarh'sDantewada district on Thursday, police said.

The rebels, including a woman, turned themselves inbefore police and CRPF officials, said district Superintendentof Police Abhishek Pallava.

They told officials that they were disappointed withthe ''hollow Naxal ideology'' and the police's rehabilitationdrive `Lon Varratu' prompted them to lay down arms, he said.

So far, 293 persons have quit naxalism in the districtsince Lon Varratu (`return to your home' in Gondi) campaignwas launched in June 2020, Pallava said.

Those who surrendered on Thursday included Gangu aliasLakhan Kuhdam (38), `commander' of Bhairamgarh area committeeof Maoists, who was wanted in at least 21 cases in Dantewadaand neighbouring Bijapur district, he said.

Kuhdam was allegedly involved in the killing of threecivilians in separate incidents in Bijapur last year and inthe Tadkel encounter in 2008 where six policemen and as manyultras were killed, he said.

Laxmi alias Sanni Oyam (38), another surrenderednaxal, was commander in the same Bhairamgarh area committeeunit and allegedly involved in at least nine incidents ofviolence, including a landmine blast in 2004 in Jangla areaof Bijapur.

Seven Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnelhad been killed in the blast.

The two were carrying rewards of Rs 5 lakh each ontheir heads, Pallava said.

The other three who surrendered -- Hemla Bandi (28),Kosa Madkam (23) and Madvi Hidma (18) -- were lower-rungcadres, he added.

Each of them was given immediate assistance of Rs10,000 and will be provided more help as per the government'ssurrender and rehabilitation policy, the SP said.

Under the 'Lon Varratu' campaign, Dantewada policehave put up posters and banners in native villages of at least1,600 Naxals, most of them carrying cash rewards on theirheads, and appealed them to return to the mainstream.