NAXALISM IN CHHATTISGARH IS FINALLY DEAD, BUT LONG LIVE COMMUNISM

BIGGEST MAOIST SURRENDER IN THE HISTORY OF CHHATTISGARH

• Some 210 Maoists who had laid down their arms over the past three days formally surrendered in Chhattisgarh on Friday, security officials said, describing it as the largest ever mass surrender in the history of the state.
• “They surrendered in a ceremony attended by chief minister Vishnu Deo Sai in Jagdalpur,” a source in the security establishment said.
• Among them were 120 Maoists who had laid down their arms in Bijapur on Thursday, and 50 who had done so at a BSF camp in Kanker on Wednesday.
• The rebels, the officials said, handed over 153 weapons, which included 19 AK-47 rifles, 17 self-loading rifles, 23 Insas rifles, and Insas light machine gun, three dozen .303 rifles, four carbines, and 11 barrel grenade launchers.

WHAT DID THE CHIEF MINISTER OF CHHATTISGARH AND SENIOR OFFICIALS SAY?

• Chief Minister Sai said, “This historic step is proof that our approach based on trust, dialogue and development — not violence — is yielding results.”
• Officials said coordinated efforts by the police, central forces, local administration, and community organizations had made the mass surrender possible.
• “These surrenders mark a decisive shift in the region, reflecting the combined impact of security measures and government outreach programmes,” an official said.
• Those who surrendered include central committee member Rupesh alias Satish; Dandakaranya special zonal committee members Bhaskar alias Rajman Mandavi, Ranita, Raju Salam and Dhana Vetti alias Santu; and regional committee member Ratan Elam, according to sources.
• Tribal community leaders and priests greeted the surrendered rebels with red roses, welcoming them into the mainstream.
• Later, the surrendered cadres posed for photographs with senior police and paramilitary officers and tribal community leaders.
• Union home minister Amit Shah had on Thursday announced that 258 Maoists had surrendered in Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra over the past two days.
• He had declared the Abujhmarh forest, once a feared Maoist “liberated zone”, and north Bastar in Chhattisgarh free of “Naxal terror”.
• Shah has repeatedly underlined the government’s resolve to eradicate Maoism, now largely concentrated in Chhattisgarh’s south Bastar region, by March 31st next year.

PM NARENDRA MODI’S PLEDGE

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said 303 prominent Maoist leaders had surrendered in the past 75 hours, accusing the Congress of nurturing “Maowadi atank” (Maoist terror) in the country.
• Speaking at a summit organized by NDTV, Modi asserted that India would soon be free of Maoist violence, offering “Modi ki guarantee” as an assurance.
• “Naxalism is, in reality, Maoist terrorism,” he said. “During Congress rule, urban Naxals were so influential that reports of Maoist attacks rarely reached the public. The Congress imposed heavy censorship to shield the truth.”
• Modi said his government’s sustained crackdown on Maoist activities had compelled many senior leaders of the banned outfit to surrender.
• “Thousands of Naxalites have surrendered over the past decade. In the last 75 hours alone, 303 have laid down arms,” he said.

CENTRE SETS MARCH 31, 2026 AS DEADLINE TO ELIMINATE MAOIST MOVEMENT

• The centre has set March 31, 2026, as the deadline to eliminate the Maoist movement.
• But the armed political insurgency that dates back to the 1960s and presently, centered mainly in the forested regions of central India, may fizzle out even before that.
• Since CPI (Maoist) general secretary Nambala Keshav Rao, alias Basavaraju, was killed in police action in Chhattisgarh in May, the political group has been in disarray.
• Many more have been killed in encounters with security forces, and a large number of cadres have surrendered.
• Close to 300 persons have laid down arms in Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra in the past three days. The movement itself is divided, with one section advocating surrender.
• The collapse of the Maoist movement, described in 2009 by the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as the country’s biggest internal security threat, is yet another example of a militaristic ideological force biting the dust.
• The success of the anti-Maoist campaign is also evidence of the robustness of India’s constitutional democracy and the flexibility of its instruments such as affirmative action and welfare programmes.
• The inequities in the distribution of resources notwithstanding, successive governments have been successful in building a State that is reasonably responsive, representative, and inclusive.
• Much more can be, and needs to be done, no doubt about that.
• The trust citizens harbour in electoral democracy is self-evident in the high polling in spite of threats from the Maoists.
• Ideological blindness prevented the Maoists from recognizing the liberatory potential in electoral democracy, and they are paying the price for it.

Editor’s Note

• The unprecedented mass surrender of 210 Maoists in Chhattisgarh signals a defining moment in India’s decades-long battle against left-wing extremism. Beyond the staggering numbers — 153 weapons surrendered and top insurgent leaders returning to the mainstream — this event reflects a deeper shift driven by trust-building, dialogue, and inclusive development. While the government hails it as a victory for peace and governance, the true test lies ahead: sustaining this momentum through continued rehabilitation, tribal empowerment, and lasting integration of former rebels into civilian life.