Opinion: The rise and fall of Maoists
Despite Indian government’s efforts to wean youth away, hardcore Maoists remain undeterred and will rise again, though when is hard to predict
By PV Ramana
The Communist Party of India (Maoist), or Maoists in short, annually observe Martyrs Week from July 28 to August 3 to mark the death of Charu Majumdar ‘CM’, the founder of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist). Majumdar’s name is synonymous with the Naxalbari uprising in 1971, in Naxalbari village, West Bengal. Led by him and Jangal Santhal, tribal peasants forcibly harvested the local Jotedars’ (rich peasants) crop. CM later died in police custody on July 28, 1972, in what was presumed to be a massive heart attack.
CM and his comrades were inspired by People’s Republic of China founder Mao Tse-tung’s idea of “let a single spark light a thousand prairie fires.” Radio Peking announced it as the second Yuan, where Mao united peasants and workers, gradually encircled towns and cities, formed a united front with Chiang Kai-shek and finally stormed to power in Peking. The Communist Party of Nepal employed similar tactics and eventually came to power in Kathmandu through participatory democratic means, surrendering its weapons and contesting elections.
Differences Disintegrate
The CPI (ML) disintegrated following the death of its torchbearers and other luminaries and cadres moving overground due to ideological and personal differences. After the nearly successful Operation Steeplechase and the failed Bargadari system, many thought naxalism was finished for good. Azizul Haq, a close associate of CM and second General Secretary of CPI (ML), came overground and died a few days later.
The undercurrents that naturally fed on harsh, oppressive and exploitative structures persisted. After a long lull, Kondapali Seetharamaiah ‘KS’ (General Secretary), joined by other comrades, united various factions and announced the formation of Communist Party of India-Marxist-Leninist (Peoples War), or PW, on International Lenin Day, April 23, 1980.
Under KS’ leadership, squads and commanders created havoc, especially in North Telangana and Dandakaranya. KS identified Abuz Mad (unknown hills) as the General Force Headquarters. He came overground in 1992 after becoming old, following a bitter power struggle in the PW. Ganapathy replaced him as General Secretary and later expanded and consolidated KS’ work before going into hibernation.
Guerrilla Zones
Under KS, the rebels established guerrilla zones in North Telangana (their first and flagship guerrilla zone), Dandakarnya, and the Andhra-Odisha Border, and later in the South Western Region, the Karnataka State Committee, and the Maharashtra State Committee. After the PW and the Maoist Communist Centre (MCC) united on September 21, 2004, at the 9th Unity Congress in Bihar, they consolidated into Regional Bureaus — Central, Eastern and Northern, and remain present in these areas, though limitedly.
It was during KS’ time that various mass organisations were formed, including Rythu Coolie Sangham, Dandakaranya Adivasi Kisan Mazdoor Sangh, Mahila Sangh, Radical Students Union, Radical Youth League, and Delhi Radical Students Union (now Democratic Students Union). PW also united the industrial workers of Singareni Collieries, whose now-defunct union SIKASA (Singareni Collieries Karmika Samakhaya) once called a 56-day strike, which affected the national power grid. Its influence had a cascading effect in rural areas from which its workers came. Better management policies and swift police action led to SIKASA’s dissolution.
In the North, Kankahiya Chatterjee, also a close associate of CM, formed the breakaway Kranti Sena, which later became the MCC after merging with the Revolutionary Communist Centre. Using similar area-wise power of seizure tactics, they gained control in West Midnapore, Bankura and Siliguri (where the Naxalbari uprising began) districts of West Bengal, and gradually penetrated Jharkhand, beginning with Dumka in the east.
Maoists are committed to armed struggle, but giving them a chance to join the mainstream will work — Nepal’s Maoists and Sri Lanka’s Janata Vimukti Peramuna are living examples
The ground was fertile after Shibu Soren’s Jharkhand Mukti Morcha came to power with the bifurcation of Bihar into two separate States. Later, they seized power to a large extent in Chatra, Hazaribagh and Latehar in the north and Khunti (30 km from the capital Ranchi), Saraikela, West Singhbum and Jashmedpur (Tata Nagar: urban base of industrial workers) in the south.
Seizure of Power
Through area-wise seizure of power, Maoists occupied large tracts in Bengal (West Midnapore, Bankura and Purulia), Jharkhand (Gaya, Chatra, Hazaribagh, Khunti, Saraikela, East Singhbum), Uttar Pradesh (Sundargarh, Chandauli and Mirzapur), Maharashtra (Gadchiroli, Bhandara), Madhya Pradesh (Satna, Balaghat), united Andhra Pradesh (Karimnagar, Warangal, Khammam, Nalgonda, Adilabad, Nizamabad, Prakasam, East Godavari, Vizianagaram, Srikakulam, Visakhapatnam), Odisha (Koraput, Malkangiri, Nayagarh, Gajapati and Ganjam), and the entire Bastar region in Chhattisgarh. Between 1998 and 2004, the Maoists lost ground in North Telangana and the Andhra-Odisha border.
After further losses between 2004 and 2025, the rebels retreated into the Bastar National Park Area. Nambala Kesava Rao ‘Basavanna’ is the only General Secretary of the Maoists to have died fighting the security forces. Their cadres have been annihilated, and various State governments have put in place a persuading surrender and rehabilitation policy, besides initiating development projects.
Globally, where armed seizure of power succeeded, leaders like Vladimir Lenin and Joseph Stalin (then USSR), Fidel Castro (Cuba), Mao Tse-tung, Ho Chi Minh (Vietnam) and Prince Souphanouvong (Laos) captured power. Others like Charu Majumdar, Abimael Guzman alias Gonzalo (Peru), Ibrahim Kaypakkaya (Turkish Communist Party – Marxist-Leninist) and Rohana Wijeweera of the Communist Party of Ceylon (Maoist) died in police custody or were killed in battle.
Even as Maoists remain committed to armed seizure, it is better to offer them a chance to join the mainstream and contest elections. Nepal’s Maoists and Sri Lanka’s Janata Vimukti Peramuna are living examples.
Though skill development programmes have been initiated to steer youth away from crime or naxalite-terrorist groups, these have hardly reached those in need. And despite such initiatives, hardcore Maoists will not be deterred. They will fall and rise again. It is hard to predict when. But it is certain.
Bonduker nol-i, khomotar utsa (‘Political power grows out of the barrel of the gun’, the slogan coined by Mao Tse-tung).
(The author, a PhD from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, is a student of Maoist Movement)
