Maoist top leader Barse Deva, along with 15 other members of the group, is reported to have surrendered to the Director General of Police in Telangana. However, the state police have not made an official announcement regarding this matter. According to sources, he is currently in the custody of the Telangana police. An official announcement from the Telangana police is expected within one or two days.

Barse Deva served as the chief of the Maoist party's Guerrilla Liberation Army. He became a key figure in the Maoist party after the encounter involving Hidma and he was in charge of the Maoist party's armed forces.

Hidma and Barse Deva were identified as belonging to the same village in Chhattisgarh. Deva played a crucial role in supplying weapons to the Maoists. 

After prolonged deliberations on where to surrender among the four states- Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana- he was brought under escort by Kothagudem district police and surrendered, sources said.

Chhattisgarh police sources revealed that Barse Deva had decided to surrender even before Hidma's encounter. They stated that the process accelerated following Hidma's encounter. There is a reward of  Rs 50 lakhs on him.

Reliable sources indicate that Barse Deva got in touch with police from four states through mediators and ultimately surrendered in Telangana.

Barsa Deva, from Puvarthi village in Sukma district, had worked alongside Hidma, who was recently killed in an encounter, for about one-and-a-half decades.

After Hidma, who was the commander of PLGA (People's Liberation Guerrilla Army) 1st Number Battalion, was promoted to the Central Committee, the party assigned those responsibilities to Barsa Deva.

He later took on State Military Commission duties as well. Rising from Darbha Divisional Committee Secretary level to 1st Battalion Commander, Barsa Deva participated in several key operations. Chhattisgarh police noted his involvement in multiple ambushes where CRPF personnel were killed.

Following the central government's launch of Operation Kagar, consecutive encounters, leadership losses, surrenders, weapon surrenders, and other actions have thrown field-level divisional committees and squads into disarray.

Chhattisgarh police say that after Hidma's encounter, squad commanders, party area committee members, squad members, and militia fell into confusion, leading them to conclude that surrendering is the best option.

Responding to this, the Telangana president and general secretary of the Civil Liberties Committee demanded in a press release that the government immediately produce Barsa Deva, who is in Telangana police custody, before the court.

They mentioned that 15 others are also with him. They reminded that just two days ago, police had apprehended them near the Telangana-Chhattisgarh border.