Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel's call for going tougher on surrendered Maoists sparks debate in state

Bhupesh Baghel

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, during the Niti Aayog governing council meeting held on June 22, suggested that the government's policies on surrender and rehabilitation of senior Maoist leaders must be changed to allow legal cases to continue against them, the Indian Express has reported.

"There should be a relook at the surrender and rehabilitation policy for Maoists," Baghel said during his speech, according to the report.

"There are many Naxals who are of the rank of Central Committee, who have been involved in violent activities for 25-35 years, (and) surrender because they are unwell or getting old. Because of the present policy, they escape any punishment," Baghel added.

Although the Centre and the state's policies on the rehabilitation of Maoists do not legally dismiss pending cases upon their surrender, they are rarely followed up. This is because the surrendered Maoists often insist on staying out of jail, the report states.

Moreover, the central government's surrender and rehabilitation policy states, "Heinous crimes committed by the surrenderee may continue in courts. For minor offences, plea bargaining could be allowed at the discretion of the State Authorities". According to the report, the use of the word "may" allows authorities some space to manoeuvre.

Baghel's speech, according to the report, has sparked a debate within the state's security establishment. While some senior officials said that a continuation of legal cases would lead to senior Maoist leaders not surrendering, thus affecting the core principle of surrender, others disagreed, suggesting the move would not have any effect.

"I don’t believe surrenders will stop. They are surrendering because their situation has become so bad, and they need to (surrender). Justice must be done," Director General (Anti-Naxal Operations) Girdhari Nayak told the newspaper.

However, the report states that certain sections among the state police force are of the opinion that, strategically speaking, this is not a good idea.

"When someone becomes a (member of) Central Committee or a higher level, there is no option that allows you to slink away… you cannot simply return to your villages for fear of reprisal," a senior officer said.

"Either they are in the organisation – in the forests, working for Maoists at very high levels – or they surrender," the officer added, stating that senior leaders of the Maoist cadre surrender because they believe that no harm will come to them.

"It is also clear that despite a bloody history, this strategy has served those states well. It is clear that if the government says legal action will follow, it will deter senior Maoists from coming out, and that makes the state lose one bargaining chip," the officer quoted above told the newspaper.

Another officer, stating that "nothing is easy in Naxalsim", said that the Maoists should face legal scrutiny "in an ideal world".

"But if a decision deters leaders contemplating surrender from doing so, we must think what that will mean, and if the larger goal is for the problem to come to an end as peacefully as possible in the long run," the officer added.