Left -wing extremism and challanges

NAXALISM:

• Spread to 17 states affecting nearly 185 out of 602 districts.
• Bw 2010 to 2015, 2k civilians and 800 security personnels have been killed by maoists across India.

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Origin:

1. 1925: CPI founded
2. 1964: CPI (M) split from CPI
3. 1967: CPM participated in polls and formed a coalition got in WB. Younger cadres led by Charu Majumdar objected.
4. Naxalabari Uprising (25th May 1967): Naxalbari district of WB. Communist Party of China hailed it as the 'Spring Thunder of India'.
5. 1969: CPI (ML) Marxist Leninist formed. Carried out acts of violence under 'annihilition of class enemy'. This further spilt and as of 1990s 2 major groups were present:
1. CPI-ML PWG ie People's War Group: naxalites of AP
2. MCC: Maoist Comunist Centre by naxalites of Bihar
6. 2004: except some splinter groups, MCC, CPI-ML and other naxalites merged into CPI (Maoists) collectively called Maoists. It was under Ganapathy.

Ideology:

• Maoism: form of communism developed by Mao of China. Doctrine to capture power through a combination of armed insurgency, mass mobilisation and strategic alliances. Maoists also use propoganda and disinformation against State institutions as components of their insurgency doctrine. Mao called this 'protracted people's war' where emphasis is on military line to capture power.
• Naxalism vs Maoism: generally used interchangeably. 2 differences:
1. Naxalites take part in election and many registered with EC. Maoists dont support elections at all.
2. Naxalites may have an armed wing and often indulge in violence; but the existence of Maoists depends on armed militia.

Nature of the movement:

• emerged as greatest internal security, support of people in forest and tribal areas
• makes govt non functional
• spreads fear among officers and law abiding citizens
• 3 levels:
1. Guerilla warfare on lower levels of govt: to create vacuum at grassroot level governance structure. Operates through Peoples Liberation Guerilla Army (PLGA)
2. Recruitment and Propoganda: coerce local pop to join. Absence of governance becomes a self fulfilling prophecy as delivery systems are extinguished through killings and intimidation.
3. Front orgs: to create mass mobilisation in semi-urban and urban areas.  Take up issues of dispalcement of tribals, corporate exploitation, HR violations etc.

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Current status:

• Dandakaranya in south Chhattisgarh has been nucleus. 
• Active support to people's mov in Niyamgiri, Agency Area (Vizag)
• Sukma incident - chh
• Attacks on eco infrastructure
• Naxalite or Maoist violence is mainly concentrated at present in pockets such as Abujhmad and Narayanpur districts, Bastar, Dantewada and Sukma, all in Chhattisgarh.
• One of the deadliest attacks took place in April 2010, involving the massacre of 76 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel in Dantewada.

Expert group on Devlepment and causes of discontent, unrest and extremism by PC identified Causes:

• Land related: ceiling, tenures, reforms
• displacement and forced evictions
• rural inequality, low literacy, unemp
• tribal alienation (40% dispalcement so far due to mining)
• apathy in forest bureaucracy in implementing FRA, 2006
• Naxalites operate in a vacuum created by inadequacy of administrative and political institutions, and seek to offer an alternative system of governance which promises emancipation of these segments from the clutches of ‘exploiter’ classes through the barrel of a gun
• poor representation of tribals in democratic process

Govt started 4 pronged approach since 2006:

1. Security related
2. Development
3. Ensuring rights n entitelements of local communities/forest dwellers
4. Improve governance and public perception

Steps taken by GoI:

1. Modernization of police forces: assistance to States to create 400 Fortified police stations in affected districts
2. Two major developmental schemes - The Additional Central Assistance (ACA) and Road Requirement Plan
3. Public perception management - to bring trust deficit through effective implementation of PESA 1996
4. Surrender-Cum Rehabilitation policy for Naxalites: training + FD
5. Since Police and Public Order are State subjects, centre tries to act as a facilitator:
• provides CAPF and CoBRA 
• Setting up of Counter Insurgency and Anti Terrorism (CIAT) schools
• Scheme for Modernization of State Police Forces
• Security Related Expenditure (SRE) Scheme - to reimburse security costs
6. Roshini scheme: skill dev in LWE areas
7. Civic Action Plan: welfare activities tbd by CAPF
8. Media plan: state media
9. Black Panther Combat Force (on the lines of Grey Hounds), Bastariya Battalian (made up of tribals)

Above steps led to positive results, decrease in violence + govt. considering to redraw Red Corridor and decrease affected districts by upto a fifth.

Issues:

1. Negligence of established standard operating procedures. Ex. recent Sukma Attack resulted in death of 25 CRPF personnel.
2. Insufficient intelligence backup
3. Structural deficiencies such as putting IPS deputationists in almost every senior position in CRPF ignoring the decades of experience within the Force. 
4. Capacity building of police forces has been sluggish. For example – in Chattisgarh, there are about 10,000 vacancies in different ranks in state police and 23 sanctioned police stations have yet to be set up.

Way forward:

• Use tech - UAV, outreach programs.
• Operation 'SAMADHAN' by MHA:
1. S-Smart leadership
2. A-Aggressive strategy (400 fortified police stations to be set up)
3. M-Motivation and training (by Greyhounds)
4. A-Actionable intelligence (Joint Task Forces for operations along inter-State boundaries)
5. D-Dashboard Based KPIs (Key Performance Indicators)
6. H-Harnessing technology
7. A-Action plan for each theatre 
8. N-No access to financing (PMLA to be reviewed)
• Triangular approach - L&O, Dev, psychological. To win the psychological war against maoists - civil society plays a key role.
• Engage youth construcitvely. Ex Livelohood colleges established by govt in Chh.
• Conclu: Indian democracy is strong enough to absorb even its adversaries if they abjure violence. 

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RADICALISATION

• process by which an individual, or group comes to adopt increasingly extreme political, social, or religious ideals.
• 23 Indian youth reported to have joined the ranks of the IS (Small compared 760 from the U.K. and 150 from the US, yet danger)
• Missing youth from Kerala reported to have joined ISIS in Syria - recently died in air strikes

Required measures:

1. Formation of “extremism counselling hotline” similar to the one set up in Austria, which will enable parents, teachers and friends of "vulnerable and indoctrinated" youth to seek professional help for their "deradicalization”.
2. Similar to US’ counter radicalization program focused on community outreach and UK’s Prevent and Channel programmes.
3. Govt must reach out to minority communities.
4. Religious leaders should be encouraged to counsel against radicalization.
5. Preventive measures for lone-wolf style attacks.

Steps taken:

1. Karnataka: modernising madrasas by imparting academic knowledge + database of mosques and madrasas
2. Maharastra: deradicalisation programme for the minority community. Police have been told to identify and reduce any feeling of communalism within the force.
3. Operation Chakravyuh of the IB, where a dedicated set of officers monitor the web all day long tracing the activities of the youth who are in touch with ISIS operatives or viewing the material posted.

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