Bhopal/Balaghat, Dec 6 (IANS) In what is being described as the largest Maoist surrender in Madhya Pradesh’s history, 11 members of the Kanha Bhoramdev (KB) Division of the MMC Zone are set to formally lay down arms before Chief Minister Dr Mohan Yadav on Sunday.

Among them is Kabir, alias Mahendra, the head of the KB division, who carried a bounty of Rs 77 lakh and was wanted across three states.

The group, comprising six men and four women, is currently housed at the Police Line in Balaghat.

Sources have identified the surrendered Maoists as Naveen, Kabir, Rakesh, Samar alias Raju Atram, Lalsu, Shilpa, Jaishila, Zarina, Soni, Janaki, and Vikram, though officials have yet to confirm the names officially.

The surrender took place late on December 6, when the Maoists, assisted by a forest guard, contacted Hawk Force personnel. They were escorted to the bungalow of the Balaghat Range Inspector General around 11 p.m. before being moved to the police line for interrogation and completion of surrender formalities.

Chief Minister Dr Mohan Yadav is leaving for Balaghat at around 2 pm. Kabir’s surrender marks a significant breakthrough in the decades-long battle against Naxalism in Balaghat, a district that has endured the shadow of Red Terror for nearly 35 years.

Security forces have intensified operations following the Central government’s March 2026 deadline to eradicate Naxalism, leading to a wave of encounters and surrenders across the region.

Preparations are underway for a formal event where the surrendered Maoists will hand over their weapons to Chief Minister Yadav, symbolising their return to the mainstream.

This development follows a series of recent surrenders, including that of a 22-year-old female Maoist in Balaghat on November 1 under the new surrender policy, and the surrender of eleven Maoists in Gondia, Maharashtra.

Earlier, Dhanush and his wife, a Maoist couple active in Balaghat, also surrendered in Chhattisgarh. In 2025 alone, security forces carried out more than 2,350 anti-Naxal operations in Balaghat, resulting in the deaths of eight Maoists and the surrender of over two dozen others. Yet, the search continues for Ramdher, a member of the Maoist Central Committee, believed to be hiding with a dozen cadres near the Chhattisgarh border.

The Balaghat surrender is being hailed as a decisive step toward ending Naxalism in Madhya Pradesh, signalling that the decades-long insurgency may finally be nearing its end.

–IANS

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