Left-wing extremism has weakened in Telangana over last five years: SATP data

HYDERABAD: With the Maoists observing Bharat bandh on Thursday as a mark of protest against the Centre’s Operation Samadhan policy, a look at data suggest that the strength of Left-wing extremists in the State has weakened over the last five years, either through deaths, arrests or surrenders.

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According to data available at South Asian Terrorism Portal (SATP), at least 57 Maoists were arrested from the State in 2018. This year alone, already 17 have been arrested. Cumulatively, in the last five years, a total of 219 arrests were made. Similarly, a large number of Left-wing extremists from Telangana also surrendered over a course of time. Last year, 10 Maoists surrendered - -the most notable surrender being that of a senior CPI-ML Maoist Party dalam member Matla Anil alias Ganesh in July. However, 2017 saw the most number of Maoist surrenders with the figures touching 23.

Since the formation of the State, the incidents of killing have also been under check. Last year saw 3 such incidents where one Maoist and two civilians were killed. Again, 2017 showed a spike in terms of violence. As many as 12 Maoists were killed in five incidents in the year.

In fact, when compared, data shows that 2017 was the busiest year for Maoists -- in terms of killings, arrests and surrenders. A considerable number of arms were also seized in the last five years. However, SATP’s assessment report said there were problems that still persisted despite a progressive weakening of the LWE movement. “Their residual capacities cannot be simply ignored,” the report states.