Kolkata: A day before the Republic Day, wanted Maoist couple Ranjit Pal and Anita alias Jharna Giri surrendered to state director general of police (DGP) Surajit Kar Purkayastha at Bhawani Bhavan on Wednesday. The couple was actively involved in Nandigarh and Lalgarh movements apart from many other subversive activities in the Jangalmahal.

Originally from Khejurkhenna village at Barikul in Bankura, Ranjit alias Tarit (45) was the member of the state military commission of the CPI(Maoist). He was also the area commander of the Bengal Jharkhand Odisha Border Regional Committee of the outfit which he joined at the age of 28.

His wife was the member of Dalma-Ayodhya committee of the banned organisation and was in the organisation for the last ten years.

She even stated before the media that she played a role in the Nandigram movement. Ranjit surrendered an SLR to Mr Purkayastha in presence of Kolkata Police commissioner Rajiv Kumar, criminal investigation department chief Rajesh Kumar and additional director general of police (law and order) Anuj Sharma at the surrender ceremony.

Reading out individual statements Ranjit and Anita said that they agreed to the special task force of the Kolkata Police to leave the path of violence which, according to them, has no future now.

They also called upon other rebels to give up their arms and return to the mainstream of the society. The couple however refused to reply to the questions by the mediapersons.

The state DGP informed that in the last six years 217 Maoists surrendered themselves to the the police responding to the rehabilitation package of the state government.