Denial was decimated at Dantewada last week. The massacre of 76 lives demands Indians face the harsh truth. Maoism is terrorism. By definition, terrorism is the use of force or violence to intimidate. Maoism is terrorism draped in a fig leaf of virtuous intent, in Marxist-Leninist ideology. It was in November 2004 when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh first declared Maoism as the biggest threat to India. For six years Maoists have been "enemy number one" and grown without fear of retribution. The Maoists are thriving because India has been hostage to romantic notions of a band of do-gooders chased by evil in uniform.
Make no mistake, Maoists are extortionists and terrorists masquerading as modern day Robin Hoods aided by a thick fog of sentiments. Yes. Every third person in India, or nearly 400 million people live below the poverty line. It is deplorable and a reflection of failed politics and stalled governance. Maoism has flourished because the vote has become a four-letter word that impales decisions, a disincentive for political parties from doing the right thing. Poor road connectivity, the fading writ of law, abject poverty are all allies of Maoism. Circumstance of poverty though cannot be an alibi for violence, nor a justification for terror. Not in a democracy which affords citizens many avenues to seek justice. Like fashion victims some commentators find reason to sympathise with the cause of Maoists, to condone criminality and intellectualise the indefensible. Let's not forget the goal of Maoists is to overthrow the Government through an armed struggle. Eloquence is not a substitute for rationale. Those presenting poverty and oppression as justification for stoking terror are ideologically in the company of Osama bin Laden.
Dantewada is just another milestone on the Maoist agenda. Since 2004, India has suffered over 7,000 incidents involving Maoists in which over 5,000 have been killed. In 2009, Maoism claimed a life every eight hours. Apologists for Maoism cite lack of development even as Maoists wrecked over 1,700 schools in just two years-in 2008 and 2009. More lives have been claimed by Naxal violence than Jihadi terror in the past decade. Maoist guerrillas have described the state as the "enemy" and the conflict as a "war". A war is being waged against India in 220 of its 600 districts, or one in three districts.
Home to the argumentative billion, India also seems to be the emerging refuge of the banal babel. Every Maoist attack triggers in its wake a tedious tide of rhetoric on the need for a political approach to tackling Naxalism. A day after 76 jawans bled to death, the Government is trapped in a debate on whether it will deploy the army or not, whether it will use air power or not. How can we use force on "our own" ask the pacifists in the system, forgetting that never has India been so bloodied by its "own". This is not the occasion for semantics-military or paramilitary, air power or air force. And the war can't be won with just 7,000 trained men. It calls for a new strike force and drafting of trained ex-servicemen. The operative phrase should be "fitting response".
Every inch of India is ruled by the states and war will essentially have to be waged by states. The Centre can at best be a catalyst, the evangelist. If state governments are not delivering, they should be named and shamed. Yes, the war will not be won by bullets alone. If India truly aspires to be a superpower then it needs to reclaim both the landscape and the mindspace. It could be a public private partnership. Corporates could be invited to adopt the 100 worst districts under the social responsibility banner to help deliver social infrastructure. On its part, the Government could create a special mechanism to ensure implementation of programmes like nrega and Bharat Nirman under the supervision of senior bureaucrats and young ministers of state. As Home Minister P. Chidambaram has said: "We need a strong head, a stronger heart and staying power to win." The massacre has forged a political consensus across the political spectrum. It is a rare moment that must be leveraged. India must respond. India must declare a war, on the conditions which foment Maoism and Maoists.
Article reproduced from indiatoday.Written by :Shankkar Aiyar
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