File picture of items seized after police killed 13 rebels in a recent encounter

Bhubaneswar, Sept. 24: Intensified combing by security forces is yielding results in Malkangiri, a known Maoist stronghold, with 13 rebels being killed and around 20 of them laying down arms in the district in the last few weeks.

The spate of surrenders which began on September 3, when four Maoists approached the police expressing the desire to give in, continues. While six rebels gave themselves up before the district superintendent of police, Akhileshwar Singh, yesterday, more are said to be in touch with the cops.

Sources said that Maoists operating in Malkangiri, which shares borders with both Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh, have been hit following the September 14 encounter in which 13 of them were killed

“Life of a rebel is tough. Many are actually being blackmailed or coerced into working for the Maoist movement even though they want to lead normal lives. We expect more rebels to surrender in the coming days,” said a top cop.

That ordinary cadres are being kept within the fold of Maoist movement at gunpoint is evident from the statements of a number of rebels who have surrendered in the recent past. Most of them have admitted to being exploited and threatened by senior leaders and even questioned the latter’s commitment to the cause of fighting for the poor.

A group of Maoists who surrendered recently in Malkangiri told the police that they would have laid down arms much earlier but for the fear of retaliation from senior leaders such as Golla Ramulu alias Madhav, who was killed last August in an encounter with the security forces in Koraput district.

Combing by security forces in Malkangiri and its adjoining areas was stepped up following a visit to the district earlier this month by K. Vijay Kumar, security advisor to the Union home ministry.

Kumar held a brainstorming session with senior officers of district police and the BSF posted in the area and helped them chalk out an effective anti-Maoist strategy.

Sources said that security forces were now keen to penetrate Malkangiri’s “cut-off” area, which is located across the Balimela reservoir.

In another development, Maoist banners and posters threatening action against Bargarh district collector Bhabagrahi Mishra and ruling BJD MLA Bijaya Ranjan Singh Bariha after a trial in the Maoist kangaroo court have appeared in the Piakmal area of the district.