With surrender of Mallojula Venugopal Rao alias Sonu, Maoists suffer setback to ideology, communication and people connect

Sonu’s surrender, which comes months before the March 2026 deadline set by Home Minister Amit Shah to wipe out Naxalism from the country, marks the close of a long chapter in Maoist history. According to intelligence sources, he was the ideological head of the party, a communication specialist, and the thread that connected it to the world outside the forests of Chhattisgarh.

A BCom graduate hailing from Peddapalli in Telangana, his brother, Mallojula Koteshwar Rao alias Kishenji, was killed in 2011. “Sonu and others were inspired by the Radical Students Union and the People’s War Group,” an intelligence source said. “With his exit, it is clear that the Maoist party has suffered a setback.”

Sonu’s surrender comes after an ideological split in the Maoist party came to light in the form of a to-and-fro of letters. It was Sonu who first pushed for the “cessation of armed struggle” to “save the party”.

Sonu’s first letter was widely discussed and criticised by the party ranks, with a section of the Central Committee and Telangana State Committee of the party condemning his approach and even calling him a “traitor”.

Sonu, who has many other aliases like Abhay, Bhupati, Vivek and Rajan, was appointed as a CPI (Maoist) spokesperson in 2010. He came from a poor family, and his father and grandfather were freedom fighters, said security officials, adding that he studied at the Government Degree College at Peddapalli and joined the People’s War Group in the 1980s.

After Kishenji, who was leading operations in Lalgarh in West Bengal, was shot dead, the party asked Sonu to take over the Lalgarh operations. His mother, Madhuramma, passed away in October 2022 at their home in Peddapalli. Late last year, his wife, Vimala Sidam alias Tara, surrendered before Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. She, too, had joined the Maoists 30 years ago and had risen to become a member of the Dandaranya Special Zonal Committee.

His three letters, written in Telugu, came after the Maoists suffered heavy losses in Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra. After writing the first letter, Rao, his comrades claim, encouraged several Telangana-based cadres to surrender in the Bhadradri-Kothagudem and Mulugu areas.

Behind the scenes

Sonu and the cadres surrendered early on Tuesday near Fodewada in Bhamragad taluka, close to the Chhattisgarh border. According to reports, buses were sent along the Laheri road to bring them to the Gadchiroli police headquarters. All the surrendered Maoists will formally lay down arms before Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday.

According to police sources, the surrender process began months ago after Sonu’s wife turned herself in before Fadnavis in Gadchiroli, along with 10 senior Maoists. Her surrender helped build confidence between Sonu and Maharashtra’s security agencies, police sources said.

Officials said he had been under pressure and disillusioned after the CPI (Maoist) leadership chose another leader, Devuji, as General Secretary, following the encounter of Basavaraju, a post Sonu was once considered for.

“That decision created deep resentment within him. Over time, he began looking for a trustworthy channel to surrender,” a senior officer said.

The recent encounters in Chhattisgarh, in which two Central Committee members were killed, also pushed him to avoid surrendering there due to fear of retaliation or mistrust. Similarly, he felt Telangana would not cooperate with his surrender efforts, and he would have to cross vast forests to reach Hyderabad.

Instead, he turned to Maharashtra, where the state’s surrender and rehabilitation policy has encouraged several top-level cadres to give up arms in the past.

His surrender was facilitated through the Intelligence Cell of Gadchiroli Police and C-60 commandos in the Bhamragad area. “He was convinced that Maharashtra police would ensure a fair process,” said an officer involved in the operation.

A letter from a former Maoist

Senior officials said a letter from a surrendered Maoist, Anil, played a vital role in inspiring Sonu’s decision to surrender. Anil, who was closely associated with several high-ranking leaders, including Sonu, detailed his life after leaving the movement.

In the letter, Anil opens with a personal greeting, “Respected Com. Sonu Dada, Johar! I hope that you are safe even in these difficult circumstances. Anju and I surrendered in Nagpur on September 15, 2024. Both of us are currently in Gadchiroli. We received positive cooperation from the police, and I have secured a job. We are planning to build a house right here in Gadchiroli.”

He also noted the trend of others joining the mainstream, writing, “Tarakka (Sonu’s wife) is also with us. Approximately 60-70 of us have gathered here. Tara Didi is fine; when her health deteriorates, we take her to the hospital. Her family members also visit her regularly.”

“Since arriving here, I have listened to and read multiple reports, considered both sides of the arguments, and reviewed party literature available online. My conclusion is that armed movements have no future in India, the Indian Armed Forces are now more powerful, modern, and centralised than ever before,” he wrote.

This realisation was compounded by the human cost, as he lamented, “The daily news of deaths and increasing violence deeply saddens my heart. The thought of hundreds of people being killed is heart-wrenching.” He questioned the long-term effectiveness of armed struggle, adding, “It was much later that I understood how long achievements gained through the power of violence can last.”

The letter contained a critique of the Maoist movement’s internal struggles and strategy: “Today, the Maoist movement in India has reached a point where it should review itself in a calm environment. Of all the setbacks since 1972, the biggest setback has happened now.”

He went on to criticise the party’s urban sympathisers, claiming, “The urban structures on which the party is holding some hope are extremely selfish, lazy, and useless. Many people have used the party’s name to enhance their academic and intellectual careers… They have done so much for themselves with the party’s funds.”

Anil’s central plea to Sonu was a personal one, urging him to return, “How many years must have passed since you wrote a book or a story due to your responsibilities? I say, now is the time to write that. You must live for your own people at any cost. We do not want a sensitive and true intellectual to die.”

He dismissed the revolution’s chances, pointing out that “We see that a socialist revolution has not been accomplished in a single country”

Police sources say Sonu holds extensive knowledge of Maoist networks, both in the forests and urban areas. His surrender is expected to trigger further defections from North Bastar and Maad divisions (Abujhmad), where several cadres have already expressed willingness to surrender. According to police sources, 100 more Maoist cadres are expected to surrender in Chhattisgarh in the coming days.