Naxalites, also sometimes referred as Naxals, is a term used to define a group of people who are carrying out a violent struggle against the landlords and others. They are doing this on behalf of the landless laborers and the tribal people. The Naxals are considered far-left radical communists, supportive to Maoist political sentiments and ideology. Their origin can be traced to the split in 1967 of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), leading to the formation of the Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist). This movement has its origin connected to Naxalbari, a small village in West Bengal. In 1967, an aggressive uprising was declared to adopt an armed struggle to redistribute land to the landless. This was followed by fights, small attacks, arrests by police and more land disputes. These events encouraged the tribes and the poor people to join the rebellion and they started attacking local landlords. From this ‘Naxalbari Uprising’ came the word Naxalite.
Naxalites propagate that they are simply fighting oppression and exploitation to create a classless society. They believe there are the Adivasis, Dalits, and the poorest of the poor, who work as landless laborers for a pittance are often left untouched by India’s development and bypassed by the electoral process. However, their opponents claim that they are terrorists oppressing people in the name of a class war. Over the years, they have started extorting money from the middle level land owners and also exploiting the lives of the people they claim to be fighting for.
Naxals have two main groups: People’s War and the Maoist Communist Centre. But just like other movements set up with high principles, over the years the Naxalite movement is seen losing its vision and having compromised its principles. Nevertheless, the fact that it has an endless supply of men and women joining its ranks shows that many still believe in its cause.
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Aditi Rindani 