Jharkhand: Maoist carrying Rs 25 lakh reward surrenders, possibly first case of Maoist surrendering in his native village
The surrendering Maoists also deposited one INSAS and two pistols. (Source: File/ Representational Image) The surrendering Maoists also deposited one INSAS and two pistols. (Source: File/ Representational Image)
A zonal commander of the CPI (Maoists) and six of his associates surrendered before the police in his native village in East Singhbhum district Wednesday. The zonal commander, Kanhu Munda alias Mangal Ji, had been active for more than two decades and carried a reward of Rs 25 lakh on his head. Officials said this could well be the first case of Maoist surrendering in his own native village.
The surrender took place in the presence senior police officials, including DIG (Kolhan) Range, Prabhat Kumar, in Jiyan village under Gudabandha police station area of East Singhbhum district this evening. Kanhu’s associate, Fogra Munda, who carried Rs 10 lakh reward, and others including Chunnu Munda, Bhoglu Singh Munda, Jiten Munda, Shankar and Kajal, a woman Maoist, were among those who surrendered.
Kumar said Kanhu, who was secretary in the Jharkhand-Odisha-Bengal regional committee, had become part of the Maoist think tank in the area. “His surrender, along with that of his associates, has come a huge morale booster. With this, one of our patches; on the West Bengal border; has been cleared of Maoist presence. Also, the manner in which he has surrendered will go a long way in persuading others to follow suit,” said Kumar.
Arguably, this was the first case where a Maoist surrendered before his villagemates. “The idea was brought before him and Kanhu felt comfortable surrendering before his own villagemates,” said Kumar. Residents from adjacent villages were also called to witness the simple ceremony where a cheque of Rs 25 lakh was given to Kanhu, as per surrender policy. On Fogra, the police had proposed a reward of Rs 10 lakh, but it was yet to be cleared by the screening committee.
The surrendering Maoists also deposited one INSAS and two pistols. So far, a total of 47 cases registered against Kanhu have come to light in East Singhbhum district. “We are checking out his credentials in other districts and states also,” said Kumar. One of the cases in which he was involved was killing of Inspector Sunil Nag and three others in 2006 in Singhpura village of Gurabanda area. He was also involved in the kidnapping of BDO (Dhalbhumgarh) in 2010.