13 left-wing extremists surrendered in Dibrugarh and Cachar districts of Assam on Thursday.

The cadres were associates of CPI-(Maoist) leader Arun Kumar Bhattacharjee alias ‘Kanchan Da’ who was arrested earlier this year.

Special Director General of Police, GP Singh tweeted, “13 cadres of proscribed CPI-M joined mainstream today – leaving the path of violence behind – at Dibrugarh and Cachar. They are associates of CPI-M leader Aru Kumar Bhattacharjee @Kanchan da who was arrested earlier this year by @assampolice."

Arun Kumar Bhattacharjee was arrested in Cachar district on March 6 this year.

Additional Superintendent of Police of Dibrugarh, Bitul Chetia had said earlier on Thursday that nine persons claiming to be Maoist cadres had approached the government for surrender and the district police was verifying their connection with the proscribed CPI-(Maoist).

The 72-year-old ‘Kanchan Da’ was tasked to set up a state-level committee of the CPI-(Maoist) in Assam and create a “red corridor” from a neighbouring country to other Maoists-infected states of India like Jharkhand, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh among others, police had said after his arrest.