DGP warns Maoists, highlights success in combating crime, drug issues

Hyderabad: Telangana Director General of Police (DGP) Jitender on Sunday once again warned the outlawed CPI (Maoists) to stay out of the state, emphasising that any further provocation would prompt the police to take action to ensure public safety.

During his annual press conference, the DGP said except for a few incidents, law and order in 2024 have been effectively maintained in the state, with strong measures taken against violent crimes, Maoist activities, and communal and terrorist outfits.

On the Left-Wing Extremism (LWE) front, there have been no major issues, except for the killing of two innocent people by Naxals in Mulugu district in November. Following this, the police launched a combing operation and restored normalcy, the DGP said. "They (Maoists) engaged in criminal activity, killing two people under the guise of being police informers.We cannot tolerate such actions. Therefore, we had to launch an operation andwarned them not to operate in Telangana. If they continue their activities, we will take necessary action, as the safety and security of Telangana's citizens is our priority," Jitender said.

Seven Maoists, including a key leader with a Rs 20 lakh reward on his head, were killed in an exchange of fire with police in a forest area of Mulugu district on December 1. The action followed after the Maoists were implicated in the killing of two men in a village in Mulugu, who were suspected of being police informers.

The Telangana Police chief further stated that the police successfully countered the CPI (Maoist)'s attempts to form small action teams and carry out offences in the state. This led to four exchanges of fire, neutralising 14 extremists and seizing 24 firearms across Telangana. He said 85 extremists were arrested and 41 cadres of the CPI (Maoist) surrendered.

The DGP further said a total of 1,69,477 cases were reported up to November 2024 in the state as against 1,38,312 during (January to November 2023). He stated that the Telangana government is prioritising the control of narcotics and aims to make the state a zero-drug-availability region. A total of 1,942 drug-related cases were registered, leading to the arrest of 4,682 individuals, with drugs worth approximately Rs 143 crore seized, he added.