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Naxalite

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Map showing the districts where the Naxalite movement is active

Naxalite or Naxalism is an informal name given to communist groups that were born out of the Sino-Soviet split in the communist movement in India. Ideologically they belong to various trends of Maoism. Initially the movement had its centre in West Bengal. In recent years, they have spread into less developed areas of rural central and eastern India, such as Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh through the activities of underground groups like the Communist Party of India (Maoist).[1] They are conducting an insurgency, typically called the Naxalite-Maoist insurgency. They now have a presence in 40 percent of India's geographical area,[2] and are especially concentrated in an area known as the "Naxal Belt," comprising 92,000 square kilometers.[3] According to India's intelligence agency, the Research and Analysis Wing, 20,000 insurgents are currently in operation,[4] and their growing influence[5] prompted Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to declare them as the most serious threat to India's national security.[6]

The CPI (Maoist) and some other Naxal factions are now considered terrorists by the Government of India.[7] In February 2009, Central government announced its plans for simultaneous, co-ordinated counter-operations in all Left-wing extremism-hit states—Chhattisgarh, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal, to plug all possible escape routes of Naxalites.[8]

Contents

[edit] History

The term Naxalites comes from Naxalbari, a small village in West Bengal, where a section of Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M)) led by Charu Majumdar and Kanu Sanyal led a violent uprising in 1967, trying to develop a "revolutionary opposition" in opposition to the CPI(M) leadership. The insurrection started on May 25, 1967 in Naxalbari village when a peasant was attacked by hired hands over a land dispute. Local peasants retaliated by attacking the local landlords and the violence escalated.[7] Majumdar greatly admired Mao Zedong of China and advocated that Indian peasants and lower classes must follow in his footsteps and overthrow the government and upper classes whom he held responsible for their plight.[9] He engendered the Naxalite movement through his writings, the most famous being the 'Historic Eight Documents' which formed the basis of Naxalite ideology.[10] In 1967 'Naxalites' organized the All India Coordination Committee of Communist Revolutionaries (AICCCR), and later broke away from CPI(M). Uprisings were organized in several parts of the country. In 1969 AICCCR gave birth to Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist).

Practically all Naxalite groups trace their origin to the CPI(ML). A separate tendency from the beginning was the Maoist Communist Centre, which evolved out of the Dakshin Desh-group. MCC later fused with People's War Group to form Communist Party of India (Maoist). A third tendency is that of the Andhra revolutionary communists, which was mainly presented by UCCRI(ML), following the mass line legacy of T. Nagi Reddy. That tendency broke with AICCCR at an early stage.

During the 1970s the movement was fragmented into several disputing factions. By 1980 it was estimated that around 30 Naxalite groups were active, with a combined membership of 30 000.[11] A 2004 home ministry estimate puts numbers at that time as "9,300 hardcore underground cadre… [holding] around 6,500 regular weapons beside a large number of unlicensed country-made arms".[12] According to Judith Vidal-Hall (2006), "More recent figures put the strength of the movement at 15,000, and claim the guerrillas control an estimated one fifth of India's forests, as well as being active in 160 of the country's 604 administrative districts."[13] India's Research and Analysis Wing, believed in 2006 that 20,000 Naxals are currently involved in the growing insurgency[4]

Today some groups have become legal organisations participating in parliamentary elections, such as Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation. Others, such as Communist Party of India (Maoist) and Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Janashakti, are engaged in armed guerrilla struggles

[edit] Bengal insurgency

The Naxalites gained a strong presence amongst the radical sections of the students movement in Calcutta.[14] Large number of students left their education to join revolutionary activities. Majumdar adjusted the tactics of CPI(ML), and claimed that the revolutionary warfare was to take place not only in the rural areas but everywhere and spontaneously. Thus Majumdar's 'annihilation line', a dictum that Naxalites should assassinate individual "class enemies" as a part of the insurrection was put into practice not only against landlords, but also against university teachers, police officers, politicians and others.

Throughout Calcutta, schools were shut down. Naxalite students took over Jadavpur University and used the machine shop facilities to make pipe guns to fight the police. Their headquarters became Presidency College, Kolkata. They are also presumed to have assassinated the vice chancellor of Jadavpur University, Dr. Gopal Sen.[15]

The Naxalites soon found ardent supporters among the educated elite, and Delhi's prestigious St. Stephen's College, alma mater of many contemporary Indian leaders and thinkers, became a hotbed of Naxalite activities.

The strategy of individual terrorism soon proved counterproductive. Eventually, the Chief Minister, Siddhartha Shankar Ray, began to institute counter-measures against the Naxalites. The police are accused of several civil and human rights violations on the Naxalites, including detention without counsel, torture, and staged shootouts.

In a matter of months, the Naxal uprising was quelled. The view of the police and the state was that the only language the Naxals understood was that of deadly force. They also argued that effectively the state was fighting a civil war with these communists and democratic pleasantries had no place in a war, especially when the opponent did not fight within the norms of democracy and civility. This insurrection tarnished the image of the radical Maoists and their support dwindled.[7]

Moreover, the movement was torn about by internal disputes. Large sections began to question Majumdar's line of struggle. In 1971 CPI(ML) was split in two, as Satyanarayan Singh revolted against Majumdar's leadership. In 1972 Majumdar was captured and died in police custody in Alipore Jail. After his death the fragmentation of the movement accelerated.

Lalgarh, West Bengal has emerged as a region close to coming completely under control of the CPI(M) after the group threw out the local police and staged random attacks against ruling communist government in late May 2009. The region became increasingly under assualt by Maoist guerillas. The state government initiated a huge operation with federal paramilitary forces and state armed police to retake Lalgarh in early June. Police oppression in the form of alleged torture, illegal detention, arbitrary arrests along with the majority of the populace being unemployed or underemployed and living well beneath the poverty line has created a massive base of support for the radical anti-capitalists. Maoist leader Kishenji claimed in an interview that the mass Naxalite movement in Lalgarh in 2009 aimed at creating a 'liberated zone' against "oppression of the establishment Left and its police" has given them a major base in West Bengal for the first time since the Naxalite uprising was crushed in the mid-1970s and that "We will have an armed movement going in Calcutta by 2011". [16]

[edit] Cultural references

Organizations listed as terrorist groups by India
Northeastern India
National Socialist Council of Nagaland-Isak-Muivah (NSCN-IM)
Naga National Council-Federal (NNCF)
National Council of Nagaland-Khaplang
United Liberation Front of Asom
People's Liberation Army
Kanglei Yawol Kanna Lup (KYKL)
Zomi Revolutionary Front
Kashmir
Lashkar-e-Toiba
Jaish-e-Mohammed
Hizbul Mujahideen
Harkat-ul-Mujahideen
Farzandan-e-Milat
United Jihad Council
Al-Qaeda
Students Islamic Movement of India
North India
Babbar Khalsa
Bhindranwala Tigers Force of Khalistan
Communist Party of India (Maoist)
Dashmesh Regiment
International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF)
Kamagata Maru Dal of Khalistan
Khalistan Armed Force
Khalistan Liberation Force
Khalistan Commando Force
Khalistan Liberation Army
Khalistan Liberation Front
Khalistan Liberation Organisation
Khalistan National Army
Khalistan Guerilla Force
Khalistan Security Force
Khalistan Zindabad Force
Shaheed Khalsa Force
Central India
People's war group
Balbir militias
Naxals
Ranvir Sena
 v • d • e 

The British musical group Asian Dub Foundation have a song called Naxalite. This song was part of the soundtrack to the 1999 film Brokedown Palace. In 2005 a movie called Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi directed by Sudhir Mishra was released with the backdrop of Naxalite movement. In August 2008, Kabeer Kaushik's Chamku starring Bobby Deol and Priyanka Chopra explored the story of a boy who takes arms against the state.

There is a reference to a character, in the novel, The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy, joining with the Naxalites.

The 1998 film Haazar chaurasi ki Maa (Mother of 1084-the number assigned to her son) starring Jaya Bachchan gives a very sympathetic portrayal of a Naxalbari militant killed by the state.

The Kannada movie Veerappa Nayaka directed by S.Narayan portrays Vishnuvardhan - a Gandhian with his son becoming a Naxalite. The 2007 Kannada movie Maathaad Maathaadu Mallige directed by Nagathihalli Chandrashekhar again portrays Vishnuvardhan as a Gandhian, confronting a Naxalite Sudeep showing that although the ways adopted are different both convince to achieve common goal.

Eka Nakshalwadya Cha Janma, (Marathi: The birth of a Naxal), a novel written by Vilas Balkrishna Manohar, a volunteer with the Lok Biradari Prakalp, is a fictional account of a Madia Gond Juru's unwilling journey of life his metamorphosis from an exploited nameless tribal to a Naxal.[17]

[edit] Deaths related to violence

Violence has peaked in India from Maoist or Naxalite separatist violence being more dangerous to India's national security than either Pakistan, or insurgents in Kashmir and north-east states.

From the Ministry of Home Affairs it has been stated that:

  • 1996: 156 deaths [18]
  • 1997: 428 deaths[18]
  • 1998: 270 deaths[18]
  • 1999: 363 deaths[18]
  • 2000: 50 deaths[18]
  • 2001: 100+ deaths[18]
  • 2002: 140 deaths[18]
  • 2003: 451 deaths[18]
  • 2004: 500+ deaths[18]
  • 2005: 892 deaths
  • 2006: 749 deaths
  • 2007: (as of September 30, 2007) 384 deaths[19]

(related to Naxalite insurgency)[20]

  • 2008: 938 casualties including (38 Maoists).[21]

[22]

  • 2009: Naxalites separatists struck at the first phase of elections on 16 April, 2009 in Bihar, Chattisgarh and Jharkhand killing 18 civilians and security forces. Later, on 23 April, 2009, they also struck in the second phase of polling in Jamshedpur and surrounding areas in Jharkhand injuring several member of the polling party. May 2009: 16 police die in suspected Maoist attack [23]

The BBC maintains that upwards of 6,000 people have died in the Naxal uprising.[6]

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Ramakrishnan, Venkitesh (2005-09-21). "The Naxalite Challenge". Frontline Magazine (The Hindu). http://www.flonnet.com/fl2221/stories/20051021006700400.htm. Retrieved on 2007-03-15. 
  2. ^ "Rising Maoists Insurgency in India". Global Politician. 2007-01-15. http://globalpolitician.com/22790-india. Retrieved on 2009-03-17. 
  3. ^ "Rising Maoists Insurgency in India". Global Politician. 2007-01-15. http://globalpolitician.com/22790-india. Retrieved on 2009-03-17. 
  4. ^ a b Philip Bowring Published: TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2006 (2006-04-18). "Maoists who menace India". International Herald Tribune. http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/04/17/opinion/edbowring.php. Retrieved on 2009-03-17. 
  5. ^ "Are Naxalites on path of righteousness…?". Asian Tribune. http://www.asiantribune.com/index.php?q=node/5325. Retrieved on 2009-03-17. 
  6. ^ a b "South Asia | Senior Maoist 'arrested' in India". BBC News. 2007-12-19. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7151552.stm. Retrieved on 2009-03-17. 
  7. ^ a b c Diwanji, A. K. (2003-10-02). "Primer: Who are the Naxalites?". Rediff.com. http://us.rediff.com/news/2003/oct/02spec.htm. Retrieved on 2007-03-15. 
  8. ^ Co-ordinated operations to flush out Naxalites soon Economic Times, Feb 6, 2009.
  9. ^ Charu Mazumdar, "'Boycott Elections!' International Significance of the Slogan", Liberation, December 1968. Snippet: ... Any hesitancy, ever so little, to recognize that the thought of Chairman Mao is Marxism-Leninism of the present era, cannot but weaken the anti-imperialist struggle. This is because it blunts the very weapon with which revisionism has to be fought. Chairman Mao has taught us that we cannot advance even one step to attack imperialism without hitting revisionism ... http://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/mazumdar/1968/12/x01.html
  10. ^ [1][dead link]
  11. ^ Singh, Prakash. The Naxalite Movement in India. New Delhi: Rupa & Co., 1999. p. 101.
  12. ^ Quoted in Judith Vidal-Hall, "Naxalites", p. 73–75 in Index on Censorship, Volume 35, Number 4 (2006). Quoted on p. 74.
  13. ^ Judith Vidal-Hall, "Naxalites", p. 73–75 in Index on Censorship, Volume 35, Number 4 (2006). p. 74.
  14. ^ Judith Vidal-Hall, "Naxalites", p. 73–75 in Index on Censorship, Volume 35, Number 4 (2006). p. 73.
  15. ^ "Mrs. Gandhi's Gamble". Time Magazine. 1971-01-11. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,876849-2,00.html. Retrieved on 2007-03-15. 
  16. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8127869.stm
  17. ^ "Who's who of Indian Writers, 1999 By K. C. Dutt, Sahitya Akademi". Books.google.com. http://books.google.com/books?id=QA1V7sICaIwC&pg=PA723&lpg=PA723&dq=vilas+manohar+writer&source=web&ots=iZo851RPGh&sig=uEHP-KtmRvUV1iO8KLsoKHx9ccU&hl=en&ei=e-ucSeCrOo_akAWtjPiiBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=6&ct=result. Retrieved on 2009-03-17. 
  18. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Armed Conflicts Report - India-Andhra Pradesh". Ploughshares.ca. http://www.ploughshares.ca/libraries/ACRText/ACR-IndiaAP.html. Retrieved on 2009-03-17. 
  19. ^ "Asian Centre for Human Rights". Achrweb.org. http://www.achrweb.org/ncm/ncm.htm. Retrieved on 2009-03-17. 
  20. ^ "Reuters AlertNet - Indian Maoist violence". Alertnet.org. http://www.alertnet.org/db/crisisprofiles/IN_MAO.htm. Retrieved on 2009-03-17. 
  21. ^ Govt. of India " the number of incidents of violence and police/civilian casualties were 1435 and 658 as compared to 1420 and 636 for the corresponding period of the year 2007"[2]
  22. ^ www.ipcs.org/pdf_file/issue/IB93-Kujur-Naxal.pdf
  23. ^ [3]

[edit] Further reading

  • Naxalite Politics in India, by J. C. Johari, Institute of Constitutional and Parliamentary Studies, New Delhi, . Published by Research Publications, 1972.
  • The Naxalite Movement, by Biplab Dasgupta. Published by , 1974.
  • The Naxalite Movement: A Maoist Experiment, by Sankar Ghosh. Published by Firma K.L. Mukhopadhyay, 1975. ISBN 0883865688.
  • The Naxalite Movement in India: Origin and Failure of the Maoist Revolutionary Strategy in West Bengal, 1967-1971, by Sohail Jawaid. Published by Associated Pub. House, 1979.
  • In the Wake of Naxalbari: A History of the Naxalite Movement in India, by Sumanta Banerjee. Published by Subarnarekha, 1980.
  • India's Simmering Revolution: The Naxalite Uprising, by Sumanta Banerjee. Published by Zed Books, 1984. ISBN 0862320372.
  • Tribal Guerrillas: The Santals of West Bengal and the Naxalite Movement, by Edward Duyker. Published by Oxford University Press, 1987.
  • The Naxalite Movement in India, by Prakash Singh. Published by Rupa, 1995. ISBN 8171672949.

[edit] External links

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