Humanise response to Maoist challenge

The killing of 29 cadres, including some top commanders, is a major blow to the Maoists operating in Chhattisgarh. The operation was conducted by the BSF, along with the District Reserve Guard, reportedly on the basis of specific intelligence inputs. A large cache of arms, including sophisticated weapons, have been seized from the Maoists.

The operation has been described as an ‘encounter’ but it is not known if the usual negative sense of an ‘encounter’ attaches to the operation. It is clear that the Maoists were surprised by the attack as they suffered heavy casualties and the security forces suffered only minor losses and injuries. It is unusual that such a large number of Maoists got together at one spot and became sitting ducks for the attacking forces. The security forces had their day.

The government has taken credit for the success of the operation. Home Minister Amit Shah has said 87 Maoists have been killed in the past 100 days. He has declared that Naxalism will be completely eradicated from the country in the next two years.

The operation, coming a few days before the Lok Sabha elections, will also give a boost to the government in a state where left extremism has posed a major threat to peace. Shah also said that Maoists were now confined to a small area in Chhattisgarh due to the offensive policy of the government. That is not entirely true.

Maoist groups are active and hold considerable influence in parts of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Orissa and West Bengal. Their writ runs in some areas and they even control them, displacing the government. They have also inflicted damage on the state by killing security personnel and looting property. 

Maoists have concentrated their activities in the central and eastern parts of the country, mainly inhabited by tribals. They have tried to win the sympathy and favours of the tribals, among the most oppressed and exploited sections in the country, by helping and supporting them and pleading their cause.

But the Maoists have also lost their support and sympathy when the government was able to reach out to them with kindness, welfare and good governance. The lesson from that is that Maoism can be eliminated not by eliminating Maoists but by eliminating the root causes that make Maoism attractive for some sections.

Maoists have also adopted a strategy in which they decentralise their forces and spread themselves across vast areas in small groups, making physical elimination extremely difficult. The anti-Maoist strategy should therefore focus more on development than on strong-arm security.