Seminar: “Maoist Role”: 06.11.2009

Muktadhara Auditorium, Gol Market, New Delhi
Chair:Prabir Purakayastha,
Speakers: Prof. Jayati Ghosh, Prakash Karat

Extracted points/ significant submissions/ formulations

[I am sorry as this blogging site has removed some colouring/ formatting tools, the points and formulations I wanted to focus specifically, could not be presented that way; however those in italics are my own additions]

Prof. Jayati Ghosh:

Perceptions & positions

Romanticisation of Maoist mayhems as ‘Revolution’ by some Left leaning intelligentsia;

Maoists in particular and Naxals in general are do not participate in the fight against US-led imperialism; not bothered about issues ranging from agrarian crisis, unemployment, food security to Nuclear deal; take no position about it; in fact such movements the world over degenerate into instruments of backroom manoeuvres by imperialist agencies like CIA;

Violence coupled with lack of any vision of future after overthrow of the present system of exploitation, of the big bourgeois controlled state. They do not speak of Socialism, democratic rights for the underprivileged – this results in undermining the progressive positions of the mainstream Left & Democratic movement. It is an empty political agenda;

Attack/ annihilate cadres of the organised Leftist movement in particular areas; seek to disrupt/ obstruct mass mobilisation by Leftist movement on burning issues affecting the toiling people;

It is a Nihilistic, anarchist and romanticised response to capitalist exploitation and state repression;

Maoist violence and gore provoke revulsion among middle class against Leftist movement in general and legitimises Govt. repression on that movement and toiling people; also it creates political space for counter activities for a Right-wing reactionary movement like Salwa Judum;.

Like Narodniks of pre-revolution Tsarist Russia Maoists oppose industrialisation and lack any vision of development – its economic outlook is similar to that of Cambodia’s murderous ultra-Left Pol Pot regime in opposing industrialisation, perpetuation of an underdeveloped agrarian economy;

Ground Realities

Maoist infested areas are basically Dryland farming, tribal areas, currently suffering from agricultural distress over and above affected by the Capitalist course of uneven development, now brutally exposed to the unjust inequalities of the market forces;

The Maoist scourge worsens the material conditions – destruction of infrastructure etc. in the affected areas and makes life harder for the population living there;

Oppose poverty amelioration/ relief attempts like National Rural Employment Guarantee (NREGA) schemes; siphon off funds for Mid-day meals, primary health centres, destroy power, transport and communication facilities;

Maoist reliance on violence results in an endless cycle of violence – violence begets violence;

Maoist Kangaroo courts ‘punish’ or victimise only the hapless poor toiling people, no exploiting landlord is ever punished;

There is absolute intolerance towards differing opinion; it is silenced by gun; recall recent media reports about Maoists trying to eliminate its splinter groups in Bihar and Jharkhand;


Prabir Purakayastha

There is absolutely no attempt to analyse the class character of the Indian State – according to them India is still a colony – they are however silent on whose colony is India now?


Prakash Karat

Putting Maoists to place

It is a Left Sectarian anarchist trend – it accompanies growth of the organised Left & democratic movement in every country – to disrupt the very same movement – as Lenin has put it “petty – bourgeois driven to frenzy by the horrors of capitalist exploitation”;

It is not to be equated with other terroristic organisation like the Islamic Fundamentalists viz. LeT, HuJI etc., which never voice any social issue; Maoists however use violence as a major instrument in their politics;

In Maoists world view, South Asia is going through a revolutionary upsurge, which includes even the TALIBAN !!! This perceived upsurge is regarded as only next to the actual West Asian/ Palestinian upsurge against US – cum – Israeli state terror in that area;

What occurred and is parallely occurring

US - led imperialism is slowly entrenching itself strategically in South Asia and Maoists are silent about it;

Naxals ultimately sided with the Indian Ruling classes from the ’70s; they were therefore used as instruments of extermination against the Left & Democratic Movement – as Cong –Shals (Congress + Nakshals/Naxals) they killed 350 CPI-M cadres; such elimination was mostly concentrated during 1970 – 72;

CPI-M was sought to be isolated and physically attacked during 1970 – 71; since only CPI-M bore the brunt of such ruling class ferocity, no other party made a protest – the same thing is happening now in putting CPI-M under siege in West Bengal with other Left Parties hardly raising any voice against the “murder CPI-M” campaign;

[This blogger still remembers how CPI-M cadres in West Bengal still used to be doubly cautious about disclosing their political identities till mid – ’80s, i.e. even after 7-8 years of Left Front Rule in West Bengal]

Attacks on CPI-M - 1970s onwards (approx. 1,500 killed and 25,000 displaced from home/ place of work) were later widened into general onslaught on democracy during the EMERGENCY;

Popular rejection of Maoists in West Bengal

Maoists are repeating the same agenda now against CPI-M in West Medinipur, Bankura and Purulia Distts. of West Bengal; they say that their “boycott” of CPI-M and State Govt. Machinery in those areas is “successful”;

However, the tribals mostly supported CPI-M in West Medinipur as CPI-M won the Jhargram Lok Sabha constituency by the biggest margin in West Bengal, amidst widespread reverses particularly in South Bengal – Lok Sabha Elections, 2009;

Murderous spree of Mao-Mulis (Maoists + Trinamulis) is therefore the most desperate in West Medinipur, West Bengal. However, they have also targeted and killed CPI-M activists in Orissa, Jharkhand and Andhra Pradesh;

Maoists weaken democratic mass movements

Maoists are nowhere known to be organisers of peasants in movement for land. Their predecessors Naxals too never organised peasants in movement for right to till and harvest land, even during the “spring thunder” at Naxalbari. All that they could achieve were diverting the developing peasants’ democratic movements from snatching surplus/ benami land from landlords to armed clashes with the Army or Police, giving the latter opportunity to launch repressive actions

It marginalises, displaces and diverts tribals’ democratic protest movements against dispossessing from forest rights, loss of tribal habitat etc., by adopting violent means, which invites Govt. repression. They operate from deep forests dwelt by tribals not for any concern for their miseries but because the terrain tactically suits their armed guerrilla operations

Only in Srikakulam Distt. of Andhra Pradesh did Naxals organise some peasant movement; there too, once they adopted violent means, police and para – military forces mowed down the movement and exterminated the leadership. Hardly, any Naxals survive there now. The only prominent surviving leader, viz. Com. Chaudhuri Tejeswara Rao acknowledges the strategic mistakes and has now returned to lead the mainstream Left movement. He is presently the Secretary, CPI-M, Srikakulam Distt. Despite the sharp ideological differences and their wrong political – tactical line, CPI-M always appreciated the heroisms and personal sacrifices made/ hardships faced by such deviated leaders of the original Naxalite movement (refer: http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl1522/15220880.htm )

In an article, Prakash Karat predicted in 1985 that Naxals would keep splitting into splinter groups but would stage a comeback as grounds exist in certain areas of the country for such a possibility;

They keep extorting money (thousands of crores of rupees) from contractors, Govt. officials, industrialists, goods consignment transporters etc. in Chhatisgarh, Orissa, Jharkhand; as they are now almost driven out of Andhra Pradesh, their original area of operation;

[This blogger also remembers recent media reports about how Maoists force tribal families at gun-point to let their teenagers join their ranks, turn them into ruthless killers and while similarly exploit the women in their ranks sexually]

Maoists’ “boycott of bourgeois parliamentary elections” is a farce, as they often negotiate with one bourgeois party, gives it covert support and enforce “boycott” of the opponent candidate;

Political combat vs. Banning Maoists

Ban seldom achieves suppression of such extremists, they regroup under different names; however, their violence – “elimination of the class-enemy”, in reality only the lowest level police personnel, army jawans, Govt. officials, teachers, doctors & nurses and political activists, no big-bourgeois/ landlord worth the name, need to be tackled administratively;

Ultra-Left groups like PWG of Andhra Pradesh and MCC of Bihar/ Jharkhand were already in the ban schedule of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act. Their regrouped synergy as “Maoists”, made them more lethal, so the only addition is of Maoists in the ban list.

Extremist organisations are not mere terrorists. So, ban under Unlawful Activities Prevention Act backfires and is hence opposed by CPI-M. The need is to fight them politically – organisationally.

UPA Govt. and PM Manmohan Singh acknowledges lack of development in the tribal areas – Privatisation of Mines & Minerals in the forested and tribal populated – dispossession of tribals – depredations of MNCs and Big bourgeois help sometimes the Maoists to strike a chord with the tribals

The hapless population of the affected areas gets caught in the crossfire; security forces which come from outside are usually unable to distinguish between the Maoists and the locals. While the guerrilla warfare trained Maoists can escape to deep forests, the locals usually face paramilitary repression.

Maoists have a special ire against CPI-M – as the latter fights it politically, organisationally and ideologically; Naxals ceased to have any base in rural/ tribal Bengal after successful implementation of Land Reforms in West Bengal.

Murderous spree of Mao-Mulis is with the objective to prevent CPI-M, West Bengal unit from working among the people – particularly the peasants and tribals

Mao-Mulis physically eliminate and uproot CPI-M cadre, particularly peasant activists, village after village in West Bengal and turn them into refugees in one’s own country; if any CPI-M sympathiser is left in the area, he/ his family has to face heavy extortion, denial of livelihood, live with constant fear of life and is compelled at gun – point to join Mao-Mulis’ meetings

“Civil Society” romancing Maoists

Maoists Left – Sectarian Appeal makes the urban intelligentsia romance it – Big business media highlights it to black out the organised Left – but the romanticisation has now become difficult in West Bengal, especially after the Maoists’ leader Kishanji confirmed several times their “joint – enterprise” with Mamata Banerji

The actual impact of the ultra – Left phraseology, of disrupting the genuine peoples struggle against the Big – bourgeois + Landlord rule and imperialist exploitation needs to be exposed through political – ideological struggle

Maoists borrow their concepts wholesale from the Left-sectarian and adventurist period of Chinese “Cultural Revolution”; for them India, like pre – revolution China, is still semi-colonial and semi-feudal; refuse to see the strong development of Capitalist industry and even Capitalist agriculture; therefore working class movement has no place in their politics

International experience of the fate of ultra – Left movements:

“Prachanda” of Nepal Maoists have denied any organisational contact with the Indian Maoists

“Senderno Luminoso” – the “Shining Path” Maoist movement of Peru got its popular appeal on a/c of the repressions let loose by the US backed military junta – lastly from the brutalities of Alberto Fujimori; however, return of democracy in Peru made them fail to adapt to the new political situation, caused organisational disarray and withering of their political appeal;

Similarly the “New Peoples’ Army” of the Philipino Communist Party, once controlling large tracts of that country failed to adapt to the democratic polity after overthrow of the dictator Ferdinand Marcos and is so diminished organisationally that not much of Left politics is left in that country