Telangana's Director General of Police, Shivadhar Reddy, announced significant developments during a press conference on Saturday regarding the surrender of Maoists in the region. He said a total of 20 Maoists, including high-profile guerrilla leader Budse Sukka, also known as Deva, have surrendered to the authorities with only seventeen maoists being left over. Notably, Raji Reddy and his wife from Telangana were among those who chose to renounce their affiliations.

DGP Reddy detailed that Deva hails from the same village as Hidma, with a substantial reward of ₹75 lakhs placed on him by the National Investigation Agency (NIA). In total, 20 members of the Maoist faction surrendered, including notable individuals like Avulam Soma, Bheme, Sushila, Vemula Raju, Nandayya, Mankku, and Anda.

Among the group was Adluri Eshwari, a member of the Telangana State Committee. The DGP reported that the Maoists surrendered an impressive cache of weaponry, including two Light Machine Guns (LMGs), an American-made Colt, an Israeli-made Tavor, eight AK-47 rifles, eight Self-Loading Rifles (SLRs), and four barrel grenade launchers.

The DGP highlighted a significant decrease in the strength of the People's Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA), which has now dwindled from over 400 members to just 66. He noted that with Raji Reddy's surrender, only one member from the Telangana State Committee remains active within the group.

This wave of surrenders appears to be a response to appeals from the Chief Minister, with the DGP announcing a rewards structure: ₹5 lakhs for division members, ₹4 lakhs for area members, and ₹1 lakh for other members, totaling a reward pool of ₹1.80 crore for those surrendering. Additionally, immediate assistance of ₹1 lakh each will be provided.

To date, 576 Maoists have surrendered in Telangana. Current intelligence suggests that only 17 individuals from the state remain affiliated with Maoist ranks, with five of them in the Central Committee and four in the State Committee. DGP Shivadhar Reddy made a poignant appeal to any remaining Maoists to consider surrendering as well.