Gadchiroli SP declares Maoist menace ‘almost over’

Mumbai: In a resounding statement signalling a historic shift, Gadchiroli Superintendent of Police (SP) Neelotpal has declared the district, once the dark heart of the ‘Red Corridor,’ is on the verge of becoming completely free of the Naxal menace. The SP expressed absolute confidence in the complete eradication of the banned CPI (Maoist) presence, noting that the remaining cadres have dwindled to a mere handful. “There has been a sea change in the situation,” SP Neelotpal stated,...

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Gadchiroli SP declares Maoist menace ‘almost over’

Mumbai: In a resounding statement signalling a historic shift, Gadchiroli Superintendent of Police (SP) Neelotpal has declared the district, once the dark heart of the ‘Red Corridor,’ is on the verge of becoming completely free of the Naxal menace. The SP expressed absolute confidence in the complete eradication of the banned CPI (Maoist) presence, noting that the remaining cadres have dwindled to a mere handful. “There has been a sea change in the situation,” SP Neelotpal stated, highlighting the dramatic turnaround. He revealed that from approximately 100 Maoist cadres on record in January 2024, the number has plummeted to barely 10 individuals whose movements are now confined to a very small pocket of the Bhamragad sub-division in South Gadchiroli, near the Chhattisgarh border. “North Gadchiroli is now free of Maoism. The Maoists have to surrender and join the mainstream or face police action... there is no other option.” The SP attributes this success to a meticulously executed multi-pronged strategy encompassing intensified anti-Maoist operations, a robust Civic Action Programme, and the effective utilisation of Maharashtra’s attractive surrender-cum-rehabilitation policy. The Gadchiroli Police, especially the elite C-60 commandos, have achieved significant operational milestones. In the last three years alone, they have neutralised 43 hardcore Maoists and achieved a 100 per cent success rate in operations without police casualties for nearly five years. SP Neelotpal highlighted that the security forces have aggressively moved to close the “security vacuum,” which was once an estimated 3,000 square kilometres of unpoliced territory used by Maoists for training and transit. The establishment of eight new police camps/Forward Operating Bases (FoBs) since January 2023, including in the remote Abujhmad foothills, has been crucial in securing these areas permanently. Winning Hearts, Minds The Civic Action Programme has been deemed a “game changer” by the SP. Through schemes like ‘Police Dadalora Khidaki’ and ‘Project Udaan’, the police have transformed remote outposts into service delivery centres, providing essential government services and employment opportunities. This sustained outreach has successfully countered Maoist propaganda and, most critically, resulted in zero Maoist recruitment from Gadchiroli for the last few years. Surrender Wave The state’s progressive rehabilitation policy has seen a massive influx of surrenders. “One sentiment is common among all the surrendered cadres: that the movement has ended, it has lost public support, and without public support, no movement can sustain,” the SP noted. The surrender of key figures, notably that of Mallojula Venugopal Rao alias ‘Bhupathi,’ a CPI (Maoist) Politburo member, and his wife Sangeeta, was a “landmark development” that triggered a surrender wave. Since June 2024, over 126 Maoists have surrendered. The rehabilitation program offers land, housing under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, and employment. Surrendered cadres are receiving skill training and are successfully transitioning into normal life, with around 70 already employed in the local Lloyds plant. A District Reborn The transformation of Gadchiroli is now moving beyond security concerns. With the decline of extremism, the district is rapidly moving towards development and normalcy. The implementation of development schemes, round-the-clock electricity, water supply, mobile towers, and new infrastructure like roads and bridges is being given top priority. He concludes that the police’s focus is now shifting from an anti-Maoist offensive to routine law-and-order policing, addressing new challenges like industrialisation, theft, and traffic management. With the Maoist movement in “complete disarray” and major strongholds like the Maharashtra-Madhya Pradesh-Chhattisgarh (MMC) Special Zone collapsing, the SP is highly optimistic. Gadchiroli is not just getting rid of the Naxal menace; it is embracing its future as a developing, peaceful district, well on track to meet the central government’s goal of eradicating Naxalism by March 31, 2026.

Bottled Greed

Correspondent
Jul 20
3 min read

A massive liquor scandal exposes Andhra Pradesh’s circular politics of vendetta, offshore money trails, and electoral manipulation.

The arrest of P.V. Midhun Reddy, Member of Parliament and floor leader of the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) in the Lok Sabha, by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Andhra Pradesh Police marks a turning point into a byzantine probe that has grown from a bureaucratic irregularity into a transnational money-laundering operation.

The charges against Reddy of criminal conspiracy, cheating, breach of trust, and laundering illicit funds through shell companies, relate to a liquor policy scam that allegedly cost the state Rs. 3,200 crore during the previous government’s tenure.

According to the SIT, Reddy played the role of “core conspirator” by designing liquor policy changes that suppressed popular alcohol brands in favour of obscure labels linked to politically connected distilleries. These firms, in return, allegedly paid hefty kickbacks routed through a constellation of dummy firms and offshore accounts. The funds, officials claim, were then funnelled into the 2024 general elections, securing “undue political advantage” for the ruling party at the time. Reddy’s arrest is the twelfth in the case, and more are expected.

The scandal’s trail leads not only through Andhra Pradesh but also to Dubai. Investigators found that a luxury apartment in the emirate owned by a businessman named Shravan Rao and allegedly linked to primary accused Raj Kasireddy had served as a safehouse for key players. The SIT has noted that Kumar made 29 trips to Dubai since the investigation began, raising suspicions of hawala transactions and foreign asset concealment. The Enforcement Directorate (ED), working in tandem with the SIT, has begun attaching properties in both Hyderabad and Dubai that are believed to have been acquired with scam proceeds.

This is hardly Andhra Pradesh’s first flirtation with scandal. The state’s politics has long been steeped in a pattern of vendetta, corruption, and dynastic ambition. The YSRCP itself was born of such a moment. Founded by Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy in 2011 after a falling-out with the Congress leadership, the party rode to power in 2019 on the legacy of his father, Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy. Yet even before assuming office, Jagan was already under investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the ED for allegedly amassing over Rs. 43,000 crore in disproportionate assets through quid pro quo dealings during his father’s tenure as Chief Minister. While legal proceedings lingered, political dominance kept enforcement at bay.

Current CM Chandrababu Naidu brings no clean sheet either. In 2023, Naidu was arrested in the AP Skill Development scam, accused of diverting Rs. 371 crore via shell companies. Then in opposition, Naidu cried foul. Today, his government calls the arrest of Midhun Reddy a lawful culmination of due process.

Yet, vendetta politics alone cannot explain the scale and brazenness of the alleged liquor scam. This was not policy failure but premeditated design. Government channels, according to the SIT, were used to nudge out established liquor brands in favour of lesser-known labels tied to political financiers. Liquor retailers were reportedly pressured to stock only approved products.

The arrest of a sitting MP makes the scandal unusually potent. It lifts the veil not only on how Indian elections are funded but also on the shifting geography of corruption. Dubai’s role as a bolt-hole and laundering hub, already well-known from past cases like that of diamond tycoon Nirav Modi, reappears here.

That trail now leads into Telangana, where Raj Kasireddy allegedly used the scam’s proceeds to buy 90 acres near a key industrial corridor outside Hyderabad. Of this, 60 acres were already sold at a profit. The remaining land, along with high-value properties in prime locations, is now under scrutiny.

The bigger question is whether this investigation marks a genuine pivot toward accountability, or merely another round in Andhra Pradesh’s unending carousel of power, privilege and payback. Each government seems fated to dig up its predecessor’s scandals, only to later bury its own. For now, the liquor may be off the shelves. But its bitter political aftertaste lingers and like any good spirit, it won’t evaporate quickly.

Gadchiroli SP declares Maoist menace ‘almost over’

Bottled Greed

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