“Operation Kagar” is underway in full force in Naxal affected areas to eradicate red terror from India by March of next year. Nevertheless, the usual suspects are once again trying to obstruct the efforts to rid the country of Left-wing extremism. On 9th June, five Left parties have voiced their opposition to the encounter of Maoist leaders in the Chhattisgarh region under the operation, in a joint letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The general secretaries of Communist Party of India (CPI), Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPM), Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation, Revolutionary Socialist Party and the All India Forward Bloc asked for an immediate end to the alleged “extra-judicial” killings that are taking place in the vicinity of Chhattisgarh under the guise of “Operation Kagar.”
Joint letter by #Left parties to PM #NarendraModi pic.twitter.com/KdncptZNpp
— CPI (M) (@cpimspeak) June 9, 2025
“There are several reports that several senior Maoist leaders are currently in the custody of the security forces. We demand that they should all be produced in court and dealt with as per the rule of law,” D Raja, MA Baby, Dipankar Bhattacharya, Manoj Bhattacharya and G Devarajan urged.
Predictably, they dragged tribal people and cried violation of their rights in order to protect the Maoists, claiming that the action had completely upended their regular life in the area. “The Adivasis have long been complaining about the militarisation of the region, which has completely disrupted normal life,” the Left leaders claimed.
“The Adivasi rights enshrined in the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution are being systematically violated and the forest and minerals of Chhattisgarh are being subjected to indiscriminate corporate exploitation with disastrous implications for environmental safety and livelihood of the local people. We urge upon you to stop this militaristic approach that treats the Adivasis with unmitigated hostility,” the letter read.
Accusations have been directed at the centre for not providing the bodies of the deceased Maoists to their families and preventing them from having a proper farewell. “This hostility is being seen even after death, with the government refusing to hand over dead bodies to their families, denying them their right to give a dignified farewell to their family members,” they complained.
With the government’s proactive stance against Naxalism in the country, the Maoists have been imploring the government to stop the operation.
“The Maoists have repeatedly urged the government to consider their appeal for dialogue. Unfortunately, the union government and the BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party)-led Chhattisgarh government have chosen not to pursue a solution through talks. Instead they are following an inhuman policy of killings and annihilation,” the Left parties bemoaned.
The letter stated that it was clear from Amit Shah’s remarks that the government was not prepared to seek an accord through negotiations.
“The statements made by the Union Home Minister, reiterating the deadline and the Chhattisgarh Chief Minister’s (Vishnu Deo Sai) assertion that there is no need for talks, reflect a mindset unwilling to resolve issues through dialogue. The government should not be intransigent and celebrate the taking of human lives against the spirit of the law of the land and principles of democratic governance,” the leaders conveyed.
They mentioned that many citizens and political parties, despite their differing opinions had requested the government to respond to the proclamation of a unilateral ceasefire by the Maoists and start a dialogue to resolve all concerns. “We reiterate the appeal and urge upon you to stop the extra-judicial killings and violence with immediate effect and order an impartial judicial enquiry,” the letter added.
The left parties are not the only ones worrying about the maoists and their future. Congress and BRS leaders have also commented on this issue.
Congress paint Maoists as victims
Amit Shah reaffirmed that naxalism will be exterminated from the nation by 31st March 2026, following the 22nd May encounter of Nambala Keshava Rao, also known as Basavaraju, who was the general secretary of the outlawed CPI (Maoist) and had a ₹1.5 crore bounty on him, along with 26 other Maoists.
However, B Mahesh Kumar Goud, head of the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC), expressed that the government should deal with Maoists by “legal and constitutional means” rather than using a brutal strategy to wipe them out in Congress-ruled Telangana. He asked the center to announce a “ceasefire” and engage in “peace talks” with the red terrorists.
Speaking at a conference hosted by the Peace Talks Committee in Hyderabad, he further charged that the center wants to destroy Maoists to allow corporations access to the natural wealth in Chhattisgarh and other states. The Congress leader even slammed the Modi government for its “fascist rule,” indicating that it is willing to negotiate with terrorists but not those who have laid down their lives to rectify social disparities.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi ignored the appeals of Maoists for peace talks, but was quick to agree to negotiations with terrorists after being scolded by United States President Donald Trump,” he accused reffering to the ceasefire between the two countries and amplified Trump’s claim which has already been exposed in US court as well as dismissed by the centre.
He declared that the principles of non-violence are the cornerstones of his party and maintained that economic disparities were the root cause of naxalism and denounced violence on all fronts to mask his public endorsement of Maoists. Notably, the leadership of Congress identified Maoism as the most significant internal security threat facing the nation.
However, the Maoists, who are responsible not only for the deaths of security personnel but also killed innocent people, abused human rights especially of tribals and have caused remote areas to be isolated from the development and progress experienced by the rest of the country to maintain their authority, have been portrayed as noble social workers who do not wield guns or organize terror attacks, but rather uplift the impoverished by Goud.
He even managed to draw unreasonable parallels between the India-Pakistan conflict and Maoism to emphasize his absurd statement.
BRS leaders defend Maoists in the name of democracy
Likewise, Dasoju Sravan Kumar, an MLC for the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), spoke on behalf of the party and emphasized the party’s dedication to democracy, peace and communication. He recounted how former Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao had asked the union government to start peace negotiations and demanded an early end to “Operation Kagar” during a public rally in Warangal.
“Today, the central government, in the name of Operation Kagar, is killing youth and tribals in Chhattisgarh. It is not fair,” Rao had alleged and added, “I am requesting the central government. It is not democracy that you go on killing people. The operation should be stopped immediately. Give naxalites democratic space and hold talks.”
Kumar then emphasized the necessity for effective platforms for people to voice their problems and warned that they turn to violence in the absence of such forums.
Another BRS leader and former Minister S Niranjan Reddy also advised the center to discontinue “Operation Kagar” and begin peace talks with the Maoists. He threatened that ongoing ‘military repression’ might undermine democratic principles and incite public indignation. “Shooting our own citizens cannot be the solution. Talks are the only way forward,” he announced.
Maoists have long been a major internal threat to India’s security, yet they are often portrayed as victims, their violent actions are defended as a fight against discrimination and these politicians even threatened the central government to stop its actions against the red terrorists, driven by their own petty political agendas.
Interestingly, they never called for dialogue to end the violence when Maoists were wreaking havoc in multiple parts of India and operating their own parallel administrations. The values of democracy and human rights appeared to be overlooked at the time as both soldiers and ordinary citizens were losing their lives.
However, as the country approaches the end of this menace, these politicians are now anxious about human rights and depict Maoists, who reject the constitution, democarcy, judiciary and every single element of the Indian Republic, as part of the country. They even attempt to create a misleading similarity between a democratically elected government and Maoists who wield their power through violence and have risen against the nation, with such statements.
Operation Kagar: A resounding success
The Modi government has been utterly relentless in its approach towards Maoists since taking charge of the country in 2014. actions against Maoists have intensified in recent years as the government has succeeded in liberating numerous regions from the violent grip of Maoists.
Several notorious Maoists have been neutralized, while many others have surrendered their weapons. Maoist violence decreased by 77% between 2010 and 2021 as a result of the government’s zero tolerance stance and robust military strategy. The number of violent occurrences has significantly decreased, from 2258 in 2009 to 509 in 2021.
Over the past ten years, the number of districts plagued by Maoists has also drastically decreased, from 106 in 2015 to 6 now (Bijapur, Kanker, Narayanpur, and Sukma in Chhattisgarh, West Singhbhum in Jharkhand and Gadhchiroli in Maharashtra). Furthermore, there have been 90% fewer deaths from Maoist terror.
2089 Maoists were killed in encounters compared to 63 previously. 928 surrendered in 2024 and as of the first four months of 2025, 718 followed the same path. The central forces working with state police, set up 320 camps in states impacted by Maoists between 2019 and 2025, including 68 helipads with night landing capabilities. There are 555 fortified police stations from 66 in 2014.
Currently, the security forces are nearing the final stages of the operation which was launched in January.
Shielding Left-extremism at the cost of national security
With the operation yielding notable success in combating these terrorists, the left-liberal gang and some political figures have grown more desperate in their efforts to shield Maoists, portraying them as traumatized individuals forced to take up arms due to discrimination within the nation.
In truth, the Maoists are bloodthirsty beings who have indiscriminately killed to establish their authority across many areas of the country.
Unsurprisingly, the same rationale used to defend terrorists or stone pelters, including breaches of human rights is employed by the same ecosystem in the name of Adivasi rights. Nonetheless, similar to their disregard for human rights in Kashmir, they also have no concern for Adivasis. The only aspect that holds importance for them is their ideology, politics and agenda.
They use fancy terms such as democracy, freedom and human rights to evoke emotional support for their narrative. However, these concepts hold no genuine significance for them. They are blinded by their agenda to the extent that they are willing to jeopardize national security in pursuit of it.
As the operation progresses and the security forces continue to deliver massive blows to Maoists, expect numerous such appeals and accusations directed at the center to try and suspend the operation. The Maoists will be described with ornate language and their evil deeds will be rationalized as a revolt or rebellion against an oppressive system.
Nevertheless, it appears that the government is determined to continue its efforts until it fulfills its commitment to eradicate Maoists from India.
