Hyderabad

Forty-two members of the banned CPI (Maoists), including a senior commander, surrendered before the Telangana police on Friday. Sodi Malla alias Keshal, the commander of the People's Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA) Battalion, is among the cadres who joined the mainstream and laid down their arms before Telangana DGP B Shivadhar Reddy.

The ultras surrendered along with a total of 36 firearms, including five AK - 47 rifles, four SLR rifles, and 800 grams of gold, the DGP said.

Addressing a press conference, Reddy said Telangana is now totally free from the armed formations of CPI (Maoist).

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He said the operational capacity of PLGA has been completely neutralised through these surrenders.

With the surrender of all leaders of Telangana State Committee (TSC) of CPI (Maoist), the remaining TSC cadre has now been neutralised, and the TSC no longer exists, he added.