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As many as 11 Naxalities, including a top woman commander, surrendered before Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis at Gadchiroli Police headquarters.
Among those who surrendered on Wednesday was 62-year-old Vimala Chandra Sidam, alias Tarakka, who led the Dandkaranya Special Zonal Committee. She carried a bounty of Rs 25 lakh on her head and was named as an accused in 66 cases in the state.
Tarakka laid down her arms after 34 years of her stint with the Naxalism movement. She was inducted into the movement as a local squad member in 1986 and rose through the ranks, becoming a member of the Dandkaranya Committee and taking part in 35 encounters with security forces.
The 11 Naxalites – comprising eight women and three men – collectively carried more than Rs 1 crore bounty on their heads and were involved in over 200 cases registered against them in Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh.
At an event in Gadchiroli, Fadnavis handed over rehabilitation kits to surrendered Naxalites and declared the region’s progress toward development and peace.
He said that North Gadchiroli was now free of Naxal activity and South Gadchiroli was expected to follow soon.
The Chief Minister highlighted that no youth joined the Maoist movement in the past four years and eleven villages have banned Naxal activities.
Stressing the importance of constitutional justice, Fadnavis said that Gadchiroli would soon be recognised as a steel city. “Justice can only be achieved through the Constitution, not through Maoist ideology,” he said.
The event also included the inauguration of a helicopter hangar for the police force, the distribution of new vehicles and the felicitation of C-60 commandos for their role in anti-Naxal operations.
