Bloodbath in Sukma

THE message from the third debilitating attack in two months on the security forces in the Bastar zone is clear. The Maoists will oppose tooth and nail any attempt by the state to intrude into areas where they have isolated themselves and fellow villagers for a quixotic attempt at overthrowing the Indian state. The battle against the Maoists in south Chhattisgarh has certainly been pockmarked by numerous instances of human rights abuses and intimidation of activists who have tried to document them. But at the end the larger question remains. What exactly are the Maoists fighting for and what has made them resilient despite an intensified manhunt?

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh termed the latest attack as an act of desperation. He is partly right. The Maoists have been largely pushed back from their erstwhile stronghold in Andhra Pradesh where they were once powerful enough to successfully assassinate the state Home Minister and nearly got the Chief Minister. In Odisha where the Maoists once stunned security forces by looting the armoury, little is heard about their latest exploits. However, they retain salience in Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh, where the undulating terrain, the forests and borders with other states are their natural allies.

But it is the kind of development that is being pushed through in these areas — basically mega mining projects by large corporate houses — that has sidelined the locals which has unwittingly made them allies of the Maoists. The absence of a chief may have tactically hamstrung the CRPF but the Maoist malaise has been around for long. The Maoists have also done a disservice to their cause by eliminating or intimidating all left and liberal forces in their strongholds. As a result, there is no alternative voice that can rise above the sound of gunfire to counsel conciliation and consensus. This has led to an unspoken all-party consensus to squeeze the Maoists out. The big mining barons provide ballast to this line of thought. Rajnath Singh is being overly optimistic but the all-out confrontation between the state and the Maoists will only prolong the agony of the locals whose cause both sides claim to espouse.