Six surrendered Naxals produced before NIA special court in Bengaluru

BENGALURU: The six Naxals who surrendered on Wednesday in the presence of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah were presented before a NIA special court on Thursday. Prior to this, they were taken for a medical checkup at Victoria Hospital.

The Chikkamagalur police produced the surrendered Naxals before NIA special court judge Gangadhar in the City Civil Court Complex. The three women Naxals had been kept at the Mahila Santwana Kendra near Dairy Circle overnight while the three men were kept at the FSL special cell in Madiwala.

The surrendered Naxalites include Mundagaru Latha and Vanajakshi from Chikkamagaluru, Sundari from Kotlur in Dakshina Kannada, Jisha from Kerala, Vasanth K from Tamil Nadu and Marappa Aroli from Raichur.

According to officials, the Naxalites handed over their uniforms and a surrender letter to the Chief Minister on Wednesday. This marks a significant step towards mainstreaming individuals previously associated with the Naxalite movement.

The Karnataka government has granted Rs 3 lakh each, along with other facilities, to all the six Naxals who surrendered. Following the surrender of six Naxals in Bengaluru on Wednesday, Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar declared that the state is ‘Naxal-free’. He attributed the achievement to the combined efforts of the state government, police officers and a dedicated peacekeeping committee.