Naxalism has two sides to it. One side reflects the political conditions which create the terrain for such revolutionary movements.
That’s what Ramachandra Guha prescribes to treat Naxalism, instead of the usual ‘law & order’ dose
One teaspoon of democracy
Naxalism has two sides to it. One side reflects the political conditions which create the terrain for such revolutionary movements. It strongly argues that Naxalism should not be perceived as a mere law and order problem. The other side reflects violence.
As a democrat, I do not approve the use of violence to settle political disputes. That’s why I am deeply critical of the extremism of the religious right, particularly of the Hindu religious right.
I see the Naxalites and Hindu religious right as the two major threats to democracy. But unlike the Hindu right, which is playing out some male jingoistic fantasy, the Naxalites are responding to a genuine issue of social and political deprivation of Adivasis and Dalits. The lower castes, particularly the Adivasis, have gained the least and lost the most from democracy.
Give Adivasis their rights
The Naxalites have to be dealt with through a democratic process. Unfortunately, the government has gone about tackling the Naxalites in a totally counterproductive way. One example is the manner in which the Chhattisgarh government has gone about tackling the Naxalites by setting up Salwa Judum.
The government claims that it’s a spontaneous movement of the people, but it’s nothing more than a State-sponsored vigilante group. It has divided the Adivasis, terrorised the population and escalated the violence.
The way to tackle Naxalites is to ensure that the Adivasis get their rights. There are mineral and mining projects coming up in Orissa, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand. They are only going to displace Adivasis and alienate them further.
Violence=more violence
Despite evidence that fighting fire with fire is leading to more violence, the government is hell-bent on pursuing a violent course. Sixty thousand people have been forcibly displaced by Salwa Judum in Chhattisgarh. It is a human rights tragedy being played out right in the heart of India.
While the Naxalities have no hope in hell of ever succeeding in a nationwide revolution, the Indian State is not helping its cause by resorting to strong-arm tactics. The scale of the violence is such that it will soon dwarf the Kashmir tragedy in the next couple of years and it has the potential to claim more victims than Kashmir has claimed in the last 15 years.
Even we are responsible
People in the cities have been in the forefront in the discrimination against the Adivasi population and have indirectly given Naxalism the space to prosper.
Instead of arming some people and saying you take out the Naxalites, and in the process creating a vigilante army, it is in our interest if an inclusive growth model is created.
Ramachandra Guha is a sociologist and historian.
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