Veteran Maoist couple surrenders before Telangana police

Hyderabad: A senior Maoist couple, each with a cash reward of Rs 20 lakh on their heads, on Thursday surrendered before the Telangana police after nearly four decades in the banned CPI (Maoist).

The return of Mala Sanjeev and his wife Deena, after 45 years underground, is considered a significant success for the holistic and comprehensive strategy of Telangana Police against the Maoist movement, a release from Rachakonda Police Commissionerate said.

The two senior underground leaders--Mala Sanjeev alias Ashok (62), State Committee Member (SCM) and Secretariat Member, Chaitanya Natya Manch (CNM), Dandakaranya Special Zonal Committee (DKSZC), Chhattisgarh along with his wife P Parvathi alias Deena (50), a State Committee Member in DKSZC, surrendered in the presence of Rachakonda Police Commissioner G Sudheer Babu.

The couple was motivated by various welfare measures extended by the Telangana government and the support shown to former Maoists who have returned to the mainstream. They expressed a desire to lead a peaceful life with their families, the Commissioner said as a reason for their surrender.

In 1980, Mala Sanjeev, a native of Medchal–Malkajgiri District, Telangana joined the Jana Natya Mandali (JNM) of CPI (ML) People's War under the leadership of Gummadi Vittal alias Gaddar and worked in it until 1986.

As a key associate of Gaddar, he collaborated with members like Dappu Ramesh, Daya, Vidya, and Divakar in conducting various cultural programmes across nearly 16 states to spread the ideology of CPI (ML) People's War and attract people to the movement, Sudheer Babu said.

Subsequently, in 1996, he joined the armed wing of the CPI (ML) People's War group, specifically the Manuguru dalam, where he served as a Division Committee Member (DVCM).

In 2007, he married Deena, who is his second wife. Together, under the banner of CPI (Maoist)'s Chaitanya Natya Manch (CNM), they organised cultural programmes across various regions of Dandakaranya to mobilise tribal communities towards the CPI (Maoist). Deena, a native of Nagarkurnool District in Telangana, joined the Upper Plateau dalam of the CPI (ML) People's War group in the Nallamala region in 1992.

In 2004, she was transferred as an Area Committee Member (ACM) to the Galikonda Area dalam under Visakhapatnam district, where she served until 2007. During the same year, she was transferred to DKSZC in Chhattisgarh and joined the CNM. In 2018, she was promoted as a State Committee Member (SCM) and continued working in CNM under DKSZC, police said.

The commissioner appealed to senior underground Maoists to return to the mainstream. "We urge Telangana Maoists to come back to their native villages and contribute to the development of Telangana," Sudheer Babu said.

He further said the Telangana government will extend all benefits under its rehabilitation schemes and other support systems available to those who join the mainstream. The government will provide full assistance to help them lead an independent and dignified life.