Latest news with #Maoists'
Hindustan Times
10 hours ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Chhattisgarh: 66 Maoists surrender across five Bastar districts
As many as 66 Maoists, including 49 carrying a cumulative reward of ₹2.27 crore, surrendered in five districts of Chhattisgarh's Bastar division on Thursday, police officials said. Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range) Sundarraj P hands over a cheque to Maoists after their surrender, in Bijapur district, on Thursday. (PTI) Officials said 25 surrendered in Bijapur, 15 in Dantewada, 13 in Kanker, eight in Narayanpur, and five in Sukma; 27 of them were women. According to the police, the surrendered cadres cited growing disillusion with the Maoist ideology, atrocities committed by the group on innocent tribals, and deepening internal rifts within the banned outfit. Many also said they were inspired by the state government's 'Niyad Nellanar' (Your Good Village) scheme, aimed at development in remote tribal areas, along with the new surrender and rehabilitation policy, and the Bastar police's 'Poona Margham' initiative for social reintegration. In Bijapur, 23 of the 25 surrendered Maoists were carrying a collective bounty of ₹1.15 crore. Among them were Ramanna Irpa (37), a member of the Odisha State Committee and the Maoists' Special Zonal Committee, who carried a reward of ₹25 lakh, and his wife Rame Kalmu (30), a Platoon Party Committee Member (PPCM) with a bounty of ₹8 lakh. Others included Sukku Kalmu (38), Bablu Madvi (30), Kosi Madkam (28), and Reena Vanjam (28), each carrying rewards of ₹8 lakh. In Dantewada, five of the 15 who surrendered had a total bounty of ₹17 lakh. Among them were Budhram alias Lalu Kuhram, a divisional committee member with a bounty of ₹8 lakh, and his wife Kamli alias Moti Potawi, who carried a reward of ₹5 lakh. With this latest surrender, a total of 1,020 Maoists — 254 of them carrying rewards — have given up arms under the 'Lon Varratu' (Return to Your Home) campaign launched in June 2020. In Kanker, the 13 surrendered Maoists carried a combined reward of ₹62 lakh, according to superintendent of police Indira Kalyan Elesela. In Narayanpur, the eight who laid down arms had a total bounty of ₹33 lakh. One of them, Vatti Ganga alias Mukesh (44), who served as the Maoists' north bureau technical team in charge, carried a reward of ₹8 lakh. Each surrendered Maoist was given immediate assistance of ₹50,000 and will be rehabilitated under the provisions of the state government's surrender and reintegration policy.
Time of India
5 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Maoists call bandh in J'khand, four other states on August 3
1 2 Ranchi: Jharkhand police are on high alert as Maoists would observe 'samriti samarohs' from July 20 to August 3 in memory of central committee member and eastern regional bureau member Vivek alias Karam Kranti, who was killed in a police encounter at Lugu Pahar area of Bokaro district on April 21. Besides, they have also called a bandh on Aug 3 in Jharkhand, and four other states — Bihar, North Chhattisgarh, West Bengal and Assam — to protest Vivek's killing and deaths of other cadres in govt's 'Operation Kagar'. Contacted, inspector general (operations) Michal Raj said, "Police are on high alert to prevent any untoward incident in view of the Maoists' programme." Source added that intelligence collection and area domination operations in sensitive spots are among the measures being taken in view of the information. Maoist eastern regional bureau spokesperson Sanket has issued a statement that Vivek who played an important role in establishing the organisation in Jharkhand and Bihar along with seven others laid down their lives in Luguburu area. He added that 'Smirti sabhas' should be held successfully in their memory. He said that Vivek's killing was a big loss for the Maoist organisation. Sanket has called upon the workers, farmers, students, youths, women and other sections of the society to make the bandh call on August 3 successful.
Time of India
5 days ago
- Time of India
Arms, ammunition recovered in Gaya village
Gaya: In a joint search operation by district police and CRPF on Saturday evening, police recovered a country-made pistol, 41 cartridges of AK-47, cartridge of Insas rifle, nine bundles of Maoists' booklet and levy receipts from Kachnaar village under Chhakarbandha police station area in Gaya district. SSP Anand Kumar said, "A team headed by Imamganj SDPO Amit Kumar, comprising STF and the CRPF 47 B battalion personnel, conducted the search operation and recovered arms and ammunition."
NDTV
6 days ago
- Politics
- NDTV
In INDIA Bloc's Virtual Meet, Some Complaints And Demands: 10 Points
New Delhi: Top leaders of the Opposition INDIA bloc held a virtual meeting on Saturday to decide what issues they should take up during the monsoon session of parliament. The meeting resembled a complaint session with many disagreements, sources said. Here's your 10-point cheat sheet on the INDIA bloc meeting Communist Party of India leader D Raja indirectly objected to Congress MP Rahul Gandhi's comment on the Left's ideology in Kerala and its comparison to the BJP's ideological mentor RSS. Mr Raja said senior leaders should be mindful of limits when criticising alliance partners. Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray, NCP (SP) leader Sharad Pawar, and Ram Gopal Yadav demanded that such meetings be called regularly. The next meeting of the INDIA bloc could be in the first week of August, sources said. Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah suggested raising the issue of full statehood for the Union Territory during the parliament session. The members agreed, and also decided to raise the issue of the Pahalgam terror attack. Dipankar Bhattacharya demanded that the issue of the central government's anti-Maoist campaign and the Maoists' demand for a ceasefire be raised. The Trinamool Congress's Abhishek Banerjee asked if the Pahalgam attack was an intelligence failure, then why did the Intelligence Bureau chief get an extension? "Pegasus is being used against the Opposition, instead of terrorists. The government is trying to bring the NRC through SIR. E-squared [ED and EC] have become puppets of the government," Mr Banerjee said. The India bloc's 24 member parties attended the virtual meeting. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) was absent, signalling a departure from the bloc's line of thinking and strategy. The other key attendees included Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, and Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren. After the meeting, Congress leader and Deputy Leader in the Rajya Sabha, Pramod Tiwari, said there was complete consensus about the concern over national security as it was being compromised in the BJP regime. He said the INDIA bloc has expressed concerns over the repeated claims made by US President Donald Trump that he mediated the ceasefire between India and Pakistan. He said Mr Trump has so far made the claims 24 times, while Prime Minister Narendra Modi has kept quiet and not responded. Mr Tiwari said INDIA bloc parties expressed their concern over SIR in Bihar. He said it was felt that there was an undeclared Emergency during which voters' names were being removed from the list.
Time of India
16-07-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Police form new cell to monitor contract killers
1 2 3 Patna: In the wake of a recent surge in killings by shooters, including high-profile murders like that of businessman Gopal Khemka and advocate Jitendra Mehta in Patna, Bihar Police Headquarters (PHQ) on Wednesday announced the formation of a special "Contract killer monitoring cell" to tackle professional hitmen. Additional Director General (ADG) of PHQ Kundan Krishnan said the new cell, formed under the Bihar Special Task Force (STF), will maintain a comprehensive database of approximately 350 known contract killers, with their physical descriptions, addresses and other crucial details. "This database will aid in the quick identification of suspects through CCTV camera footage analysis, a method that has proven successful in recent cases," he said. The move is expected to enhance the police's ability to prevent and solve such crimes through better intelligence gathering and interstate coordination. The police have already established a "Kodha cell" to monitor the Kodha gang, whose operations extend beyond Bihar. The gang members primarily originate from three to four villages in the Kodha block of Katihar district. The cell helps other state police forces identify the Kodha gang members. "Our intelligence unit, working with the Kodha Cell, has successfully solved 50 cases this year alone, both within Bihar and in other states, leading to the arrest of 70 criminals and recovery of more than Rs 55 lakh in criminal proceeds," said Krishnan. Additionally, in a significant breakthrough in an ongoing anti-Maoist operations, the Bihar STF arrested 82 Maoists this year till July 15. Besides, two wanted Maoist leaders, including Ravan's aide and spokesperson Akhilesh Singh, have surrendered. The continuous campaign has achieved a remarkable success in north Bihar, where their presence is completely eliminated. In Magadh zone, only one wanted Maoist Nitesh Yadav remains at large, currently believed to be hiding in the hilly regions of Palamu district in Jharkhand. The JB zone reports only three armed Maoists remaining, the ADG said. "The campaign has also dealt a significant blow to the Maoists' financial resources by destroying opium cultivation fields in the Magadh region, severely disrupting their supply network," Krishnan added. During various raids, security forces recovered significant arms and ammunition, including two semi-automatic rifles and 67 PMK (machine gun).
