Police cash in on naxal discontent

hyderabad: the karimnagar police havecashed in on the simmering discontent among the janashakti naxalites operatingin the district over the party leadership, which resulted in the en massesurrender. the organisational feud that erupted in the janashakti group overcollection of party funds reached a flashpoint last month, with the stateleadership alleging that the district committee secretary ranadheer had misusedfunds running into several crores of rupees. ranadheer hit back later demandingstate secretary k rajanna to come to the forest to verify the records.janashakti leadership even threatened to expel ranadheer and his colleagues fromthe party. at this point, the karimnagar district police, led by superintendentof police r s praveen kumar reportedly established contacts with the ranadheergroup and advised them to give up the underground cadre rather than leading thelife of a fugitive. the police was also said to have worked out a‘deal’ with the naxalites on the condition that they surrender alongwith their weapons, the first ever such event in the history of left-wingextremist movement in the state. accordingly, the government has sanctioned cashrewards and a rehabilitation package for the surrendered extremists, whichhitherto no naxalite from the janashakti group had received after giving upunderground life. the police officials also reportedly promised that they wouldgo soft on pursuing the kidnap case of ch marthanda rao, a close relative ofunion minister ch vidyasagar rao, and other criminal cases pending against thecadre. “the ranadheer group was told that instead of getting caught eitherby the party’s leadership, or in exchange of fire with the police, it wasbetter to surrender. they considered it prudent to follow the lastoption,� said a police official.