EVEN as the deadline to eliminate Naxalism from the country -- March 31, 2026 -- arrives, there is a reason to celebrate the massive success of the nation-wide initiative dedicated to the cause. It can be said safely that the Government’s various initiatives against Naxalism have produced sterling results. Naxalism -- Left Wing Extremism -- has been pushed to a point of near-elimination across the country. This success is the outcome of the combined action on the internal security front as well as rehabilitation of surrendered Naxals. What added an extra strength to the initiative was the reasonably high dose of welfare activities in Naxal-affected areas. This combination snatched from the Naxalite movement a chance to claim that the Government was a failure in remote areas and therefore garner greater support to the armed activity from the tribal and rural populations.

 

The Government deserves a pat on the back for the successful implementation of its programme. The Naxalite or Maoist challenge was certainly not an easy one to be handled. For the first few decades, the Government fumbled on many counts to counter Naxalism’s spread. Among those counts, one pertained to ineffective armed response to Naxalite challenge, while the other pertained to ideological confusion at the political level. There were many political and bureaucratic leaders in the Government carrying a soft-corner for Naxalites. These Left-Liberals felt that the Naxals were only an Indian community that had gone astray and had picked up guns with a clear view to overthrow the legally and constitutionally established Government. This ideological confusion led to a meek response of the Government to the Naxalite challenge in many places.

 

That in turn helped the Naxalite movement to spread far and wide in the hinterlands of India’s geographical and socio-political landscape. The ideological confusion also made some political elements form undeclared coalitions with the Naxalites and their frontal organisations for the obvious electoral benefits. Fortunately, the ideological confusion died in a few years and a clear picture of how to tackle the Naxalite or Maoist challenge emerged. The Government also accepted the stark political reality that the Naxalites were wedded to throwing off the legally established Government through armed action. From that point on, the direction of the anti-Naxalism action became very clear. From that point on about 10 years ago, the progress of the Government’s anti-Naxalism programme was rapid. Naxalism started getting pushed out from area after area -- giving a good hint that the Government’s thrust was working favourably. Now, the Government can claim most authentically that Naxalism has been eliminated nearly totally from most areas that were until late under heavy Naxalite influence.

 

However, it needs to be reminded at this point of near-complete fruition of the Government initiative against Naxalism that this point has come rather a day too late. Today’s result could have been achieved at least 15 years earlier had the Government been firm on most counts. But then, it also needs to be acknowledged that when such massive confront the nation, the response travels from the meek to confused to determined. This was how the trajectory of the Government’s response to the Naxal challenge travelled. It cannot be said that Naxalism stands totally eliminated from the country. Some traces are likely to linger and bother the larger society to some extent. No matter that, the current status is that the Government has succeeded in a near-complete elimination of Naxalism from most areas in the country; and that its fight against what is described as Urban Naxalism may continue for some more time. But there is enough reason for the Government and the society to claim success of the anti-Naxalism programme at the completion of the deadline of March 31, 2026. On that count, all of us pat our backs.