On 25 September 2023, PM Narendra Modi said in a program in Madhya Pradesh that the Congress party is now run by a few urban Naxals. On 27th September 2023, TMC MP Saket Gokhale wrote to the special secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs to ask about the details of the term ‘urban Naxals’.
Saket Gokhale wrote in his letter, “In his speech, the Hon’ble PM made a startling allegation that the party Indian National Congress is being run by a group called ‘urban Naxals’. This is also not the 1st time the PM has used this term in public speeches. On several occasions, opposition parties, as well as some journalists, activists, & NGOs, have been labelled as ‘urban Naxals’ by the PM. This is a matter of grave concern with regard to internal security as a person no less than the Hon’ble Prime Minister has indicated the existence of a group called ‘urban Naxals’.”
Saket Gokhale further asked, “In this regard, you’re required to furnish the undersigned MP with the following information. Has the Ministry of Home Affairs identified a category called “urban naxals”? If yes, please state the details of this category of persons including their activities and the basis on which they’re identified.”
Saket Gokhale also inquired about the action taken by the Union home ministry in this regard. He asked in his letter, “How many prosecutions have been conducted by the Ministry of Home Affairs or central investigation agencies into various ‘urban Naxals’ that the PM claims are allegedly operating in political parties, news organizations, & NGOS in India? Please state the standard SOP (Standard Operating Procedure) laid down by the Ministry of Home Affairs along with any communication extended to all state governments regarding the topic of ‘urban Naxals’.”
‘Urban Naxals’ first used in 2013, when Congress-led UPA was in power
Saket Gokhale accused the Prime Minister of labelling opposition parties, as well as some journalists, activists, & NGOs as ‘Urban Naxals’. However, it is not after Narendra Modi came to power in 2014 that this term has been introduced. In fact, it was in 2013, during the regime of Congress-led UPA that this term was first used by the government.
‘Urban Naxals’ more dangerous than the guerrilla army, UPA said in 2013 https://t.co/1zJjs3CsqB
— TOI India (@TOIIndiaNews) August 31, 2018
According to a report by the Times of India, the UPA government had in a counter-affidavit filed in the Supreme Court in November 2013 said that academicians and activists in urban centres had come to control “mass organisations” organically linked to Maoists under the cover of human rights.
The counter-affidavit in the ‘Kishore Samrite vs. Union of India & Others’ case elaborated on how Urban Naxal warfare constitutes a strategy employed by the CPI (Maoist) to garner public support through organisations associated with the party structure while maintaining distinct identities to evade legal responsibility.
In an indication of how governments, regardless of political affiliations, perceive ‘Urban Naxals’ as a threat, the UPA affidavit mentioned that these fronts are ‘organically linked to CPI (Maoist)’ and emphasised that these operatives are ‘in many ways more dangerous than cadres of the People’s Liberation Guerrilla Army’ (PLGA).
It is notable that PLGA is the armed division of the CPI(Maoist). According to the reports, since 2001, the Maoists of this outfit have been responsible for the deaths of 5,969 civilians, and 2,147 security personnel, and the theft of 3,567 firearms from different police and central paramilitary forces.
The phrase "Urban Naxals" was coined first by the UPA in a 2013 affidavit before the SC.
— Rahul Shivshankar (@RShivshankar) September 26, 2023
The UPA stated in SC that Urban Naxals are "in many ways more dangerous than cadres of the People’s Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA)”.
A list of "Urban Naxals" exists since UPA years. pic.twitter.com/qYrJi1JfNA
Congress leader Sushilkumar Shinde was the Union home minister when this affidavit was filed in the Supreme Court. In this sworn statement, the Ministry of Home Affairs acknowledged that commencing legal actions against these “ideologues, including academicians and activists,” frequently led to unfavourable publicity for law enforcement agencies, owing to the efficacy of the Maoist propaganda apparatus.
The affidavit said, “These ‘mass organisations’ are generally manned by ideologues, who include academicians and activists, fully committed to the party line. Such organisations ostensibly pursue human rights-related issues and are also adept at using the legal processes of the Indian State to undermine and emasculate enforcement action by the security forces and also attempt to malign the state institutions through propaganda and disinformation to further the cause of their ‘revolution’.”
It is evident from this that the term ‘urban Naxals’ was not coined during the tenure of the Modi government. In fact, it was explained in detail in an affidavit submitted by the Union home ministry in the apex court in the regime of Congress-led UPA. The accusations on the Prime Minister of linking various activists, NGOs, self-styled intellectuals and academicians with this term are also baseless because the affidavit filed by the Congress government itself says that persons from the said clouts are actively engaged in furthering the Maoist violent ideology. Saket Gokhale thus needs to first inquire this to the leaders of Congress which is one of the allies of TMC in the I.N.D.I. Alliance, rather than asking the home ministry about the details of the term ‘urban Naxals’.
