Six Maoists including Jisha of Wayanad to surrender today, end to Maoist movement in Karnataka

BENGALURU: Six Maoist leaders including a woman from Kerala, will surrender before the authorities today. Reports said Maoists including Jisha of Wayanad and Mundugaru Latha, who was with Vikram Gowda killed in Uduppi will surrender before the Chikkamagaluru Collector at 12 noon. They will then make a statement explaining why they have decided to end the armed struggle. However, the place where they will surrender is not clear.

With the surrender of Mundugaru Latha, the Maoist movement in Karnataka will be at an all-time low. All the Maoist leaders in the state have been brought to justice or killed. There are 85 cases against Latha. There are 18 cases against Jisha. Sundari Kattarulu Belthangady (71 cases), Vanajakshi Mudigere (25 cases), Jayanna Raichur alias Mareppa Arotti (50 cases) and K Vasant Ranipet Tamil Nadu (9 cases) are the others who will surrender.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had told reporters on Monday that he had asked the Maoists to surrender. He said steps are being taken to bring them into the mainstream. Writer Banjagere Jayaprakash, one of the civil society members of the surrender committee, said that the Maoists had written a letter four days ago and expressed their desire to lay down arms and come into the mainstream. He said that the Maoists had repeated the word surrender throughout the letter.

The Maoists said that they could not carry out an armed struggle anymore and had decided to join the mainstream. They said that they would continue their constitutional struggle for the rights of farmers and other issues. They have also sought an assurance from the government that the relief package will be implemented. The Maoists have demanded in the letter that the government should not implement the Kasturirangan report and that the tribals who have encroached on one acre of land will not be evicted,' Jayaprakash said.

The authorities are indicating that the cases against those who surrender will not be withdrawn. It is not clear whether the Maoists have requested this. Reports suggest that the surrender committee has discussed how to simplify court proceedings.