Four senior Maoist leaders, including two central committee members, surrendered before Telangana Police in Hyderabad on Tuesday, marking one of the highest-profile capitulations of top insurgent figures in the state.
Tipiri Tirupati alias Devujji, described by police as the most influential Maoist leader to surrender so far, said he would continue to be guided by Maoist ideology but would pursue his political activity through democratic means.
“Though I have come out of armed struggle, the ideology that I believed throughout my life will continue to guide my further political action, of course, through democratic means,” Devujji told reporters.
When journalists asked multiple questions at once, he said he was willing to speak to the media at length but that it was not the right time or place. Another central committee member, Malla Raji Reddy alias Sangram, said Maoism would never die in response to a reporter’s question.
Telangana Director General of Police B. Sivadhar Reddy said Devujji would have replaced party chief Muppalla Lakshman Rao alias Ganapati had a central committee conference been possible. Such a meeting, he said, had become impossible due to sustained security pressure.
Along with Devujji and Raji Reddy, Bade Chokka Rao, alias Damodar, and Nune Narsimha Reddy, alias Ganganna, also surrendered. While the first two are central committee members, Damodar and Narsimha Reddy are state-level leaders. Damodar earlier headed the Telangana unit of the banned Communist Party of India (Maoist).
The press conference was notably cordial, with police officials using restrained language and the surrendered leaders appearing composed. Most probing questions came from journalists, many of whom referred to the surrender as signalling the end of the road for the Maoist movement. The former leaders declined to answer detailed queries and invited reporters for separate conversations later.
“I will give interviews to all of you. No problem,” Devujji said.
Police said all four were drawn to radical politics during their early college years and dropped out of their studies to go underground.
Devujji, 62, joined the movement in 1978, spent more than four decades in the organisation and became in charge of the central military commission in 2017. Raji Reddy joined in 1971 and held several leadership positions across the country.
Chokka Rao joined the party in 1996 and mainly operated in Telangana. Narsimha Reddy, from Andhra Pradesh, joined while studying law at Acharya Nagarjuna University in Guntur and later worked in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Odisha and Jharkhand.
The DGP commended B. Sumati, in charge of the Special Intelligence Bureau, for persuading the leaders to surrender by explaining the changing societal conditions. He said the surrendered ex-militants would be eligible for benefits under Telangana’s rehabilitation and relief policy, introduced in 1993.
“This is a time-tested policy. We give reward money, land, government schemes and even education. Even 40 years back, two surrendered militants studied engineering,” he said.
Sivadhar Reddy handed over cheques of ₹25 lakh each to the four leaders and reiterated Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy’s appeal to Maoists to join the mainstream and fight for the people through legal means.
He said 11 Telanganites were still active in the Maoist movement and urged them to surrender at the earliest.
Police are also attempting to reach remaining holdout leaders, including Ganapati. The DGP said only Muppidi Sambaiah is currently active among senior figures, while most others are cadre or low-level leaders. Ganapati, who is ailing and believed to be living in an urban shelter, is also willing to surrender, and efforts are underway to convince him through Devujji and his associates.
In 2025 and 2026, a total of 591 Maoists surrendered before Telangana police. Of these, four are central committee members, 16 state committee members, 26 divisional committee members, 85 area committee members and 460 party members.
The DGP described the development as a major success for Telangana police.