Narayanpur (Chhattisgarh) [India], January 31 (ANI): Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai on Friday attended the wedding ceremony of four former Naxalite couples who got married in Narayanpur district under the Chief Minister's Kanya Vivah Yojana after surrendering.

Speaking to ANI at the event, he said, 'Today, an event was organised where four couples got married under the Chief Minister's Kanyadaan Yojana. They were already acquainted with each other. After surrendering, they tied the knot today. I congratulate them heartily... There are other people who also want to get married, and they are also welcome, and the government will arrange their marriages as well,' emphasising the government's efforts towards eliminating Naxalism.

One of the newlyweds shared his past with Naxalism, saying, 'I was working with the Maoist organisation from 2006 to 2024. I surrendered in 2025... We are getting married under the Chief Minister's Kanya Vivah Yojana. We are also benefiting from the government's policies.'

Following the event, he also later in the day interacted with the soldiers of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) in Narayanpur, Chhattisgarh, highlighting that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah have given a deadline of March 31 to remove Naxalism, highlighting that Naxals who surrender would be taken care of by the government, and noting the implementation of rehabilitation.

Speaking to ANI, he said, 'The Prime Minister and the Union Home Minister have announced a deadline of March 31, 2026, to completely eliminate Naxalism, and from the very beginning, we have been appealing to them to abandon violence. No one has ever benefited from the language of bullets, nor will they. Join the mainstream of development. The government will treat you well. We will implement an effective rehabilitation policy; it has yielded strong results, and there are still two months left. This means that if everyone surrenders, the government will certainly take care of them.'

Citing an example of surrendered Naxals participating in the Bastar Olympics in 2025, he said, 'The government also launched the Bastar Olympics last year, and surrendered individuals participated in that as well. They also participated in Bastar Pandum, so they are welcome.'

On January 20, Prime Minister Narendra Modi also raised concerns over the growing influence of urban Naxalism, saying it has increasingly acquired international dimensions and continues to work against India.

Addressing workers at the BJP national headquarters in the national capital, PM Modi said, 'Another major challenge is urban Naxalism. The scope of urban Naxalism is becoming international. If they tweet something positive about Modi even once or twice a year, or say something positive on TV, or write something positive in a newspaper, some journalists humiliate them so much that they are hounded and made untouchable. They are silenced so that they can never speak again. This is the method of urban Naxalism.'

He added that for years, such groups isolated the BJP and treated party members as untouchables across the country. 'Now the country is understanding the actions of these urban Naxals. Urban Naxals are continuously working to harm India,' PM Modi said. (ANI)