On April 16th, 2024, Union Home Minister Amit Shah publicly announced the success of a landmark anti-Naxal operation conducted by Indian security forces. The 21-day-long joint mission involving Telangana’s elite Greyhounds, Chhattisgarh police, and other paramilitary units culminated in the elimination of 31 armed Naxals entrenched in the Karregutta Hills, a strategic and symbolic stronghold located on the Bijapur-Gadchiroli border. For decades, this rugged and forested terrain had served as a fortified hideout for Naxalite commanders, from where they orchestrated attacks, enforced parallel governance, and perpetuated a state of armed rebellion against the Indian Union. This was not just a tactical success, it marked a civilizational victory. For the first time, the Indian national flag was unfurled on Karregutta Hills, a gesture both literal and symbolic, signifying the restoration of constitutional order and democratic sovereignty over territory that had long been lost to Maoist control. Prime Minister Narendra Modi rightfully celebrated this moment, not only as a major breakthrough in counter-insurgency efforts but as an emblem of the Indian state’s growing resolve to confront and eliminate domestic insurgencies born from ideological subversion. To understand why this moment holds such importance, we must revisit the ideological roots of India’s communist movement, a movement that has consistently positioned itself in opposition to the Indian nation-state.
In 1942, at a time when the Indian people were engaged in a mass civil disobedience movement demanding an end to British colonial rule, the Communist Party of India (CPI) adopted a position that many now regard as outright betrayal. Under the influence of the Gangadhar Adhikari Thesis, the CPI declared that India was not a single nation but a collection of several nationalities. On this ideological basis, they denounced the Quit India Movement as ‘fascist’ and chose instead to support the British war effort, aligning themselves with colonial rulers rather than the Indian people.
This treacherous position was not a strategic misstep, it was a clear manifestation of the Communist Part of India’s allegiance to foreign interests. At the time, the Soviet Union was aligned with the British Empire in its war against Nazi Germany. Following the instructions from the Comintern (Communist International), the Indian communists aligned their position accordingly. Thus, even during the most significant phase of India’s freedom struggle, the communists chose international Marxist directives over national liberation.
The post-independence history of Indian communism offers further evidence of this ideological foreign subservience. Whether it was taking pro-China stances during the Sino-Indian War of 1962 or denouncing India’s nuclear tests in 1998 as acts of aggression, Indian communists have consistently opposed national interests under the guise of internationalism. The most dangerous turn came in 1967 with the emergence of the Naxalite movement, a radical offshoot of the Communist Party of India-Marxist inspired by Maoist doctrine. The Naxalbari uprising marked the beginning of an armed insurgency that would plague India for decades, particularly in the tribal belts of central and eastern India.
The Naxalite movement, which later evolved into the CPI (Maoist), drew on Mao Zedong’s strategy of ‘protracted people’s war,’ seeking to overthrow the Indian democratic system through guerrilla warfare. Under the banner of class struggle, they have targeted innocent civilians, abducted and killed public servants, destroyed infrastructure, and executed members of tribal communities who refused to cooperate. The Indian state, in return, has had to expend enormous resources both human and material in containing this threat. Thousands of security personnel have been martyred. And yet, the most insidious support for this movement does not always come from the jungle. It emanates from lecture halls, newsrooms, and so-called intellectual circles in urban India.
This phenomenon, popularly called the ‘Urban Naxal’ network is not a conspiracy theory. It is a well-documented reality. Individuals embedded in universities, media outlets, and NGOs often act as ideological sympathizers, narrative builders, and logistical enablers of Maoist insurgents. Prominent names such as Arundhati Roy have repeatedly romanticized Maoist violence as ‘resistance.’ Academics like Nivedita Menon and activists like Kavita Krishnan have, under the guise of progressive politics, promoted a narrative that seeks to delegitimize the Indian state and its institutions. In 2016, slogans like “Bharat tere tukde honge” and “Afzal hum sharminda hain, tere qatil zinda hain” echoed across the Jawaharlal Nehru University campus, signaling a dangerous intersection of academic spaces with secessionist and extremist rhetoric.
What makes this ideological battle even more dangerous is the calculated hypocrisy of the Indian Left. The communists and their allies claim to champion human rights, secularism, and social justice. Yet, their outrage is highly selective and politically motivated. When Israel defends itself against terrorism, the Left calls it genocide. When China detains Uyghur Muslims in concentration camps, they remain silent. When India stands up to China at Galwan, they question the government’s intent and defend Chinese narratives. When the Ram Mandir is inaugurated after a democratic and judicial process, they cry ‘majoritarianism.’ Yet, they are unbothered by illegal conversions, foreign-funded madrassas, and religious extremism that thrives under the radar.
The Communist Part of India’s silence on the 1979 Marichjhapi massacre where over 1,000 Dalit refugees were killed by the West Bengal government—stands in stark contrast to their performative wokeness on caste issues. Their opposition to the 1998 Pokhran-II nuclear tests ignored India’s genuine security needs in a dangerous neighborhood. Their ideological kin in Kerala openly praise North Korea, glorify Chinese authoritarianism, and routinely undermine Indian military achievements. In short, communism in India has historically been and continues to be an antagonistic force against the Indian state. Whether through armed rebellion in jungles, intellectual subversion in universities, or media manipulation in studios, the Left has systematically worked to weaken the idea of India its unity, its sovereignty, and its civilizational ethos.
As the Indian flag now flies proudly over Karregutta Hills, it does more than mark military victory. It symbolizes the reclaiming of Indian land, Indian dignity, and Indian destiny from those who have never believed in the Indian nation. Communism in India must be intellectually dismantled, politically defeated, and culturally exposed not just as an outdated ideology, but as an existential threat to the world’s largest democracy. The time has come to call them what they are: not just dissenters, but enemies of the Indian nation-state.
