Telangana: CPI(Maoist) Leader Says Party Will ‘Lay Down Arms’; State Committee Calls it ‘Personal View’

Hyderabad: The Telangana state committee of Communist Party of India (Maoist) has outrightly rejected the reported resolve of the party to "lay down arms" and "temporarily suspend its armed struggle" to pave way for peace talks with government, as voiced by its spokesman and central committee member Mallojula Venugopal Rao, alias Abhay, recently.

Reacting to the statement, which was dated August 15 but released on September 16, official spokesman of state committee Jagan said that Abhay’s remarks were purely his "personal" views and had nothing to do with the party. 

In his statement, Abhay had shared an e-mail address (nampet(2025)@gmail.com) and a Facebook profile (nampetalk) seeking suggestions from the cadre and public to what he called the party decision within a month. He even posted his picture on the note.

This had raised eyebrows as furnishing IDs and displaying pictures of leaders on media releases was unlike CPI (Maoist), which practices as a secret organisation. Many believed it to be fake while Chhattisgarh police went a step further saying it had taken up investigation into the authenticity of the statement. 

Telangana Director General of Police Jitender said it could be a "mind game" played by the outfit to see if the security forces lowered their guard. 

The sensational claim by Abhay announcing the party’s decision to give up arms ran contrary to the ideological stand of CPI (Maoist) that arms were symbols of its culture and that "power flowed through the barrel of the gun". Shunning gun culture, he said the party will participate in people's struggles in a bid to find solution to the problems of oppressed classes in the country.

If the government accepts the offer of CPI (Maoist), Abhay said, the party will make the e-mail addresses and Facebook IDs operational for people to share their views for up to a month.

Though the statement stunned observers of Maoist activities, an element of doubt about its authenticity triggered wild speculation. It was speculated whether the party was heading for a split if the statement was genuine. To give strength to this was Abhay's personal ambition to head the party and fill the vacuum caused by the killing of its chief Nambala Kesava Rao alias Basavaraju in an encounter in Chhattisgarh on May 21 last.

As though to check the ambition of Abhay, it was rumoured that another central committee member Tipparthi Tirupathi had ascended to the post. This was revealed in a leak by Andhra Pradesh police when a senior leader Kamalesh surrendered recently. Moreover, a Facebook page based in West Bengal claimed that Tirupathi was the new party general secretary.

Apart from Abhay's statement, it was also unclear if the latest statement by Jagan, as the spokesman of Telangana State committee, carried any weight because only the central committee can speak for the party. 

However, key Maoist sources said Jagan reflected the party stand and there was nothing to doubt about its value. They said the central committee will also issue a separate statement.

Abhay (real name is Mallojula Venugopal Rao) is also the Politburo member of the party and elder brother of Mallojula Koteswara Rao who was killed in an encounter in West Bengal in November 2011. Koteswara Rao was the secretary of West Bengal State committee of CPI (Maoist) who was killed after a series of sermons that he gave on Naxalite ideology through electronic media from his hideout. 

The police said they zeroed in on him using high-end technology. His wife Pothula Padmavati, also a central committee member, surrendered before Telangana DGP Jitender a few days ago.

When the Union government made its position clear and continued indiscriminate killings in the name of Operation Kagar, Jagan said it was thoughtless on the part of Abhay to seek a month's time from the public on the purported decision of the party to lay down arms.

He expressed surprise at the method adopted by Abhay to seek internet intervention for views of party cadre, leaders and various committee members who were scattered at far off places.

"If he was keen on quitting the movement and working legally in the mainstream of public life, he could have taken permission after due discussion in the party platform. Had he sent his views through party channels, he could have got the replies. He whipped up utter confusion in party cadres and revolutionary camps by making public a crucial issue without following safeguards," he said.

“Abhay not only did a disservice to the party but harmed its interests. None of the political parties in the country will invite public debate seeking solutions to its internal issues by Internet. Wise thinking members will never resort to this in respect of secret parties whose democratic functioning is centralised and are facing severe repression. No one in the party will want organisational damage. Everyone in the hierarchy right down to the bottom level is seriously studying the problems on hand. Hence, the solution to the problem did not lie in a public declaration,” he added.

Urging cadre and leaders of CPI (Maoist) not to be disillusioned, Jagan appealed to them to intensify anti-people struggles of the party against “fascist BJP government at the centre” which has committed to eliminate the party by March 2026.

Abhay's statement was in contrast to his previous statement that he released on April 3, in which he said the CPI (Maoist) will announce "conditional" ceasefire if the Union government withdrew its security forces in Maoist areas, stop counter-insurgency operations, end deployment of new troops and stop opening new police stations in deep areas. 

Chhattisgarh home minister Vijay Sharma had responded that the government was open to meaningful dialogue, provided no conditions were imposed.

In the latest statement, on the other hand, Abhay said that the party had taken a positive view of the attitude of the Prime Minister, Union home minister, chief ministers and ministers of Maoist-dense states, as well as of the ruling, opposition parties and civil society organisations wanting peace talks. The party had been sincerely trying for talks since the end of March this year. Therefore, it was decided to give up arms, the statement read.

Abhay further said that this was also the desire of Kesava Rao, general secretary, who was killed in the encounter that claimed 28 lives of comrades on May 21. 

"We took the decision to take the process of talks advocated by Kesava Rao ahead. We decided to heed to the repeated advice of Prime Minister Narendra Modi asking us to give up arms and join the mainstream of public life. We are ready for talks either with the Union Home Minister or his emissaries. But, it is our responsibility to inform our changed stance to the party. 

“We will constitute a delegation to participate in the talks after keeping the party informed. Give us one month to consult our cadre working in different parts of the country and those languishing in jails. We are ready to share our views with the government by video call. The progress of peace talks will depend on a positive response from you by declaring a ceasefire and halting combat for a month," Abhay told the Union government in the statement.

Abhay's missive is viewed in the background of the surrender of his wife Vimala Sidam before Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on January 1 this year. Sidam, a tribal woman, is presently staying in a rehabilitation camp of police in Gadchiroli, Maharashtra. He commanded a handful of leaders in CPI (Maoist) who might go with him if he decided to quit, Maoist sources said.

A hint of Abhay surrendering was given by Fadnavis when he visited Gadchiroli on July 22 to participate in government welfare programmes. He had said that Gadchiroli would soon see “the surrender of rebels” in large numbers.

Sources added that Abhay was unlikely to continue in the party after so much ruckus and age was also not on his side. He was 69. He hailed from Peddapalli in erstwhile Karimnagar district. Tirupathi, another frontrunner for the top post of CPI (Maoist) general secretary also hailed from Karimnagar at Korutla. There was said to be a strong resentment among lower rung tribal cadres against Telugu domination of the central committee.

Over 400 cadres and leaders of CPI (Maoist) were killed in encounters since Operation Kagar was launched on January 1, 2024. The bulk of the killings took place in Chhattisgarh. 

The Union home minister Amit Shah who visited the state a few months ago ruled out peace talks and insisted that the operation will end with the elimination of the left wing extremist group on March 31, 2026.

Apart from Kesava Rao, prominent among those killed in Operation Kagar were central committee members Uday alias Gajarla Ravi, Modem Balakrishna and Parvesh Soren (Jharkhand). The slain state committee members included Gautam, Bhaskar, Aruna, Jagan alias Pandanna and Pandu alias Chandrahas.

Sources have also said that the name 'Abhay' was assumed by another senior leader Varanasi Subrahmaniam to issue press statements of the party until his arrest. He hailed from Guntur in Andhra Pradesh. Mallojula Venugopal Rao was the only person to get that name after that.

A clear contradiction between the statements of Jagan and Abhay in the context of giving up arms was that the former emphasised how it was futile to expect the Union government to announce ceasefire while the latter saw hope in it despite adverse conditions. Which is why Abhay announced a unilateral decision as if reflecting the party’s stand. 

"It shows he has made up his mind to surrender," a source said.

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