(continuation of Tales from Dantewada..page 2)
An analysis of the history of the Indian Maoist Movement right from its beginning in 1967 reveals a crucial fact. Be it Naxalbari in WB or Wayanad in Kerala, the adivasi population has been the strongest bastion of all these movements. The voice of this highly marginalised and exploited section of the Indian society has been unmistakably loud and clear in all these battle fields. If we take a look at the maoist strongholds in the country, tagged as the red corridor by the Indian state, this will become very obvious. The states of Chathisgarh, Jharkhand, Orissa and W B are the core realms of influence for the Maoists. These states are largely inhabitated by tribal populations like Ho, Santhal, Oron, Kole, Munda and Gond, ‘black people’ who have been around much before the birth of a country named India, much before colonisation took roots here.
These are people with a history of entering in to conflict with the mighty British even before the uprising of 1857. They have also offered resistance against the exploitation of the Jamindars who came later at the scene. Today, armed and organised by the Maoists, they’re fighting yet another battle, this time with the Indian state.
What exactly makes the gigantic Indian state so worried about the Maoist movement? After all, it’s just poor, illiterate and malnourished adivasis lead by a bunch of ideologues. This question inevitably leads us to the concept of sovereignty, a basic tenet of state as the highest political association. Apart from sovereignty the other important elements that characterises a state are territory, population and government. When these basic elements are challenged it’s the very existence of state structure that comes under question. Today, this is exactly what the Maoist movement has managed to achieve. The system of parallel government that exists in Maoist dominated areas bear testimony to this fact. If one also takes in to account the self declared goal of the Maoists, the overthrow of the Indian state by 2050, the picture becomes clearer, but also grimmer. The system of government followed by Maoists in their areas of influence goes roughly like this:
These areas are governed by janatha sarkars, modelled on Chineese revolution and Vietnam War. Each janatha sarkar is elected by clusters of villages with populations ranging from 500 to 5000. They function with the help of 8 depts. -agriculture, trade, finance, justice(nyay), defence, health, public relations, education and culture and forest conservation(ironically, gov. statistics say that the forest cover has actually increased in naxal affected areas!)
Tales from Dantewada: India's Great Internal War
The question ‘whose side are you on’ is an often repeated one in history. Marx, Gandhi and even Hitler arrived on the world stage as answers to this particular question. Revolutions, freedom struggles and revolts have all been different manifestations of the quest to answer it. They all happened as responses by the people to their realities in different contexts in history.But what happens when the very concept of a single reality is shattered? The 21st century is characterised by multiple voices, true, but it’s also characterised by multiple realities. This short introduction is meant to draw your attention to the changing nature of the Indian state since its ‘conversion’ to neo-liberalism, especially after the 80s. Also, to impress upon the contemporary complexities of the seemingly simple ‘on whose side are u’ question.
The question ‘whose side are you on’ is an often repeated one in history. Marx, Gandhi and even Hitler arrived on the world stage as answers to this particular question. Revolutions, freedom struggles and revolts have all been different manifestations of the quest to answer it. They all happened as responses by the people to their realities in different contexts in history.But what happens when the very concept of a single reality is shattered? The 21st century is characterised by multiple voices, true, but it’s also characterised by multiple realities. This short introduction is meant to draw your attention to the changing nature of the Indian state since its ‘conversion’ to neo-liberalism, especially after the 80s. Also, to impress upon the contemporary complexities of the seemingly simple ‘on whose side are u’ question.
It was in 2005 April that Dr. Manmohan Singh described Maoism as the ‘gravest internal threat’ of India. It can be seen that the then Maoist movement, when compared to the present scenario, hadn’t really qualified itself for such a remark. But today what we see is a movement spreading over 60,000 sq.k.m of forest land, with lakhs of supporters, in thousands of villages. It has become a movement that has established itself as the strongest rebel force challenging the writ of the Indian state.
Some History
The 1967 Naxalbari movement in Bengal under the leadership of Charu Majumdar, Kanu Sanyal and Jungle Santhal (later came to be known as Naxalism) is the first organised Maoist movement in India. This movement characterised by the adage ‘the thunder of spring’ rose to prominence in the 70’s and was suppressed by the 80’s. The Charumajumdar essays and speeches inspired by Chairman Mao gives a general idea regarding the nature of this movement. Majumdar’s violent and unpopular ‘annihilation theory’, lack of influence in the urban areas etc were some of the reasons for the failure of the Naxalbari movement. The Naxal uprising in AP during the 80’s can also be viewed in this context. Like Naxalbari, it was also suppressed ruthlessly and effectively by the state. The gov. intervention using special forces such as the ‘Grey Hounds’ in AP is regarded as a model for anti naxal campaigns even today.Today, India is witnessing the strongest Naxal resurgence ever in its history. The media, irrespective of its corporate and alternate avatars, has been continuously voicing its concern over the issue. The Indian state has launched ‘Operation Green Hunt’, a massive military campaign against the Maoists. In one of their most brutal attacks, the maoists massacred 75 CRPF personnel in an ambush in Dantevada recently. Special Police Officers and civilians have also been targeted. Maoists have also had to face severe setbacks. Talks about the armed forces being brought in to action are in the air.
What is it that enables the Maoist movement to re-emerge from their ashes time and again even after being repeatedly and brutally suppressed by the state? What makes a country that claims to be the largest democracy, declares war against its own people? What exactly is the alternative put forward by the Maoists? What should be the stand of the civil society of this country in this highly volatile and threateningly huge issue? These are some of the issues to which answers are sought through this article.( continued in the next post..on page 2..pls scroll up!)
The Peacock Lake
One of the most favourite hangouts in the campus. It's almost a surreal experience to be here in the evening. You are tempted to believe that you are actually in a tourist spot and not in a University!! Although the place resounds with peacock calls all the time, am yet to actually see a peacock here!
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| The Peacock Lake |
An evening drenched in Banjuri
Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasya performed here in H C U as a part of Viraasat, a cultural fest organised by SPIC-MACAY( Society for the promotion of Indian Culture, Music and Art Among Youth ). He was accompanied by Vijay Ghate on Tabla. The chief component of the performance was the ‘Kalyani’ raga. The artist later obliged to a request from the audience and played a mesmerising ‘Pahadi’ tune. The dual between the flute and tabla also proved to be a real delight as both artists soared to higher levels of competence and skill. The evening turned surreal with the splendour of music, rejuvenating the soul and soothing the mind.
Undoubtedly a welcome change from the academic routine, it also brought back memories of my Trivandrum days, where I used to spend whole days drifting through venues in the city!
MONKEYS!!
Something very drastic happened yesterday.
Since our hostel mess is yet to start, I usually have lunch at the Students Canteen.Yesterday when I reached the canteen,it was overcrowded, which was only normal. What was not normal( for a newcomer, i guess) was something I saw there: MONKEYS!! Not one, not two, plenty of them. Some were perched up on the trees, some walking fearlessly on the ground, some eating rice from some poor chap's plate ( the guy had gone inside to fetch water or something, not knowing that he'll return to find his plate half empty!)
In short, absolute pandamonium.
Finally the canteen staff had to intervene and they tried to scare them away. Some of the animals even tried charging at them,to my utter disbelief. They were so unbelievably aggressive!!
Something very drastic happened yesterday.
Since our hostel mess is yet to start, I usually have lunch at the Students Canteen.Yesterday when I reached the canteen,it was overcrowded, which was only normal. What was not normal( for a newcomer, i guess) was something I saw there: MONKEYS!! Not one, not two, plenty of them. Some were perched up on the trees, some walking fearlessly on the ground, some eating rice from some poor chap's plate ( the guy had gone inside to fetch water or something, not knowing that he'll return to find his plate half empty!)
In short, absolute pandamonium.
Finally the canteen staff had to intervene and they tried to scare them away. Some of the animals even tried charging at them,to my utter disbelief. They were so unbelievably aggressive!!
Public Meeting
The campus life slowly picks up pace as activities gets started. There was a public meeting yesterday night at the GOPS (a popular eatery and hang out at the campus) organised by SFI. Prof. Hargopal, renowned Political scientist and human rights activist, was the main speaker. He spoke on the topic 'The Changing Nature of Indian State', followed by an interaction with the students.The highlight of the talk for me was his concluding remark " Marxism is a way of thought and not a substitution for thought".
It has started raining here and memories slowly comes calling!!
The campus life slowly picks up pace as activities gets started. There was a public meeting yesterday night at the GOPS (a popular eatery and hang out at the campus) organised by SFI. Prof. Hargopal, renowned Political scientist and human rights activist, was the main speaker. He spoke on the topic 'The Changing Nature of Indian State', followed by an interaction with the students.The highlight of the talk for me was his concluding remark " Marxism is a way of thought and not a substitution for thought".
It has started raining here and memories slowly comes calling!!
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