A Maoist, carrying a reward of Rs 2 lakh on his head for his alleged involvement in the killing of an Andhra Pradesh legislator, surrendered before the police in Odisha's Malkangiri district on Wednesday.
Apart from CPI (Maoist) member Samba Khara alias Randev (27), seven militias of the banned outfit also surrendered, a senior police officer said.
Khara, who joined the banned outfit in February 2017, got disillusioned with the violent path of Naxalism, Malkangiri Superintendent of Police Rishikesh D Khilari told reporters. Khara, a resident of Luchhapani in Papermetla police station area in the district, was part of the outfit's Andhra Odisha Border Special Zonal Committee, the SP said.
He is suspected to be involved in at least nine offences including the killing of MLA K S Rao and former legislator Siveri Soma in Dumbriguda mandal of Araku Valley in Visakhapatnam district on May 8, 2018, Khilari said.
Khara will be given monetary assistance as per the Surrender and Rehabilitation Scheme of the state government to build a house, study and get trained in a trade or vocation of his choice, he added.
Just last month, another Maoist, carrying a reward of Rs 4 lakh on his head and suspected to be involved in the same killing, surrendered before Malkangiri police. 30-year-old Jipro Habika, who had joined the banned outfit CPI(Maoist) in 2012, was also an area committee member of the outfit's Andhra-Odisha Border Special Zonal Committee, the police said.
On September 23, 2018, the two politicians belonging to the ruling Telugu Desam Party (TDP) were surrounded and gunned down allegedly by Maoists near Livitiputtu village, about 15 km from the Odisha border.
The case was later taken over by the National Investigation Agency (NIA). In May last year, one of the other accused in the case, Swaroopa, was gunned down in an encounter in Odisha's Koraput district, the authorities had said.