Gadchiroli: Top Maoist leader Mallojula Venugopal Rao, alias Sonu, surrendered before authorities in Maharashtra’s Gadchiroli district on Tuesday along with around 60 cadres, officials have confirmed.

Sonu was a politburo member of the Communist Party of India (Maoist) and younger brother of Mallojula Koteswar Rao, alias Kishenji, who died in a police encounter in West Bengal in 2011. ADVERTISEMENT

Considered one of the most influential figures in the CPI (Maoist) hierarchy, Sonu laid down arms in the presence of Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, officials said.

According to them, Sonu’s decision to abandon armed struggle reflects the growing realisation among senior Maoist leaders that violence has no future and disillusionment with the ideology that “power flows through t

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