Senior Maoist leaders surrender to Telangana police

Telanagana DGP CV Anand addressing the media on the surrender of senior Maoist leaders Pasunoori Narahari alias Vishwanath alias Salai Da, Central Committee member and Bihar-Jharkhand Special Area Committee Secretary, and Medara Danamma alias Latha alias Poonam alias Joba | Photo credit: RAMAKRISHNA G

Senior Maoist underground leader Pasunoori Narahari alias Vishwanath alias Salai Da, Central Committee member and Bihar-Jharkhand Special Area Committee Secretary, surrendered to Telangana Director General of Police CV Anand on Tuesday.

Police described the surrender as a significant blow to the organisation’s eastern regional office, which it said was now on the verge of collapse.

Narahari, 64, hails from Somidi village in Kazipet mandal of Hanumakonda district. He joined the movement in 1982 after being associated with the Radical Students Union during his student years. Over the course of a decade, he worked his way up from dalam member to commander, regional committee member, state committee member and finally central committee member in 2017.

According to the police, he managed technical operations for the Maoist organization in several states, including Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Bihar and Jharkhand, and had expertise in the manufacture and maintenance of firearms, mortars, rockets, rocket-propelled grenades, grenades and booby traps. He also trained cadres in the manufacture and repair of weapons.

Originally from Guntur in Andhra Pradesh district, Danamma, 55, joined the movement in the late 1980s and later became a state committee member of the Bihar-Jharkhand Special Area Committee. She was arrested in Nagpur in 2004 and remained in jail until 2011 before rejoining the organization after being granted bail.

The couple married in 1988 and subsequently worked in various Maoist organizational and technical wings in different states.

As part of the Telangana government’s rehabilitation policy, the police handed over bills of 25,000 kr to Narahari and 20,000,000 kr to Danamma. Police officials said they will also get additional rehabilitation benefits under the state policy.

According to data released by the Telangana Police, 264 underground CPI (Maoist) cadres have surrendered in the state so far in 2026. These include three Central Committee members, 11 State Committee members, one Regional Committee member, 24 Divisional Committee members and 131 Party members.

Police also said that 238 firearms have been recovered from Maoist cadres in Telangana this year alone. Recovered weapons include AK-47 rifles, INSAS rifles, SLR cameras, carbines, revolvers and other firearms.

The Telangana Police said only three active underground cadres of Telangana origin are currently operating outside the state, including Central Committee member Muppala Laxman Rao alias Ganapathi and State Committee members Jade Ratna Bai alias Sujatha and Vartha Shekhar alias Mangthu. The DGP urged the remaining cadres to surrender and join the mainstream.

Published – 26 May 2026 16:15 IST